Novak Djokovic falls in his first match since losing in the quarterfinals of the Dubai Tennis Championships in February.
Novak Djokovic opened his clay-court season with a surprising loss to Alejandro Davidovich Fokina at the Monte Carlo Masters on Tuesday in Monaco. Davidovich Fokina stunned the top-ranked Serb 6-3,6-7 (5),6-1 in the second round to hand Djokovic another setback as he tries to move on from the controversy surrounding his refusal to get vaccinated against COVID-19. It makes for rare back-to-back losses for Djokovic, who had not played since being eliminated in the quarterfinals of the Dubai Tennis Championships in Febrary – his only previous tournament this year after he was barred from playing at the Australian Open. Djokovic had beaten Davidovich Fokina in straight sets twice last year, in Rome and at the Tokyo Olympics. Djokovic could not defend his Australian Open title in January after he was deported from the country for not being vaccinated. He had to skip tournaments in Indian Wells, California, and Miami because he couldn’t travel to the United States for the same reason. The national governing body for tennis in the United States announced the hiring Tuesday, saying Sherr will start his new role on May 2. He has been with the association for 13 years, the past decade as its chief revenue officer. Sherr will work with the USTA board to set the strategy for tennis’ growth in the U.
