World no.1 Novak Djokovic suffered a 7-6 (2), 6-7 (6), 4-6 defeat to no.7 seed Ivo Karlovic in the Qatar ExxonMobil Open quarter-finals on Thursday.
The match lasted two hours and 15 minutes.
Games went with serve in the opening set. Novak was focused in a tie-breaker and won it in convincing fashion, 7-2.
The big-serving Croat fought back taking the second set tie-breaker 8-6 to level.
Djokovic saved a break point in the fifth game of the deciding third set, but Karlovic capitalised on his break point opportunity two games later and went on to win the clash 6-4.
“He served very well,” Novak said. “But you could expect that. I was coming into the match knowing that I will have very, very few chances. But I was hoping that these conditions and the wind will kind of give me some second-serve opportunities. In these particular matches, one ball can decide a winner, and that was the case. Just played a little bit too defensive in that game. Instead of kind of going through the ball, I just sent the ball back.”
Match statistics: aces (10-19), double faults (2-3), winners (46-49), unforced errors (20-46), total points won (104-107).
Serbian combination Djokovic/Krajinovic fell to Spanish/Argentine pairing of Rafael Nadal and Juan Monaco in the doubles semi-final 6-7 (3), 1-6.
It was Novak’s first tournament appearance at the ATP World Tour 250 event in Doha.
Nole will now head to Melbourne for the first Grand Slam of the season – the Australian Open, which begins on Monday, January 19.
The four-time former titlist finished quarter-finalist to Stanislas Wawrinka in 2014, after a memorable five-set battle (6-2, 4-6, 2-6, 6-3, 7-9).
Photo: AFP/Getty Images
