Novak Djokovic disclosed that he has been managing an undisclosed health condition for years, which was exacerbated by the heat and humidity during his second-round match at the Cincinnati Open. The 24-time Grand Slam champion collapsed on court, requiring medical attention, before ultimately losing to Thiago Agustín Tirante.
Djokovic struggled visibly throughout the match on Saturday, falling to his knees and calling for treatment as he contended with the punishing conditions. Despite his distress, he refused to retire but was unable to maintain the physical level shown in his opening set win. Tirante eventually won the match 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 after more than two and a half hours.
"The conditions aren’t the problem. It’s because of a health issue I have. I’ve been dealing with it for many years now. It causes me a lot of problems, especially when there’s a lot of humidity and heat," Djokovic told reporters after the match. He acknowledged that he knew the conditions would affect him, adding that "nerves and everything that comes with a match like this" made the situation worse.
During the match, Djokovic appeared to vomit into a towel while sitting in his chair. He took a medical timeout after a grueling third game in the second set, during which trainers and a doctor attended to him. After Tirante secured the second set, both players took a break in the locker room. Though Djokovic appeared somewhat revived and set the pace in the deciding set, he faltered in the ninth game, which proved crucial.
Djokovic indicated that he likely would not return to play in Cincinnati. His next focus will be regrouping for the US Open, which begins on August 30.
In other Cincinnati Open matches, seventh seed Flavio Cobolli defeated Miomir Kecmanovic 6-1, 4-6, 6-3. Martin Landaluce advanced to a third-round clash against Tirante after beating Matteo Arnaldi 6-4, 4-6, 6-4.
In the WTA draw, Alexandra Eala advanced to the third round when her opponent, Elena-Gabriela Ruse, retired due to injury during a weather delay. Ruse had received treatment on her right ankle before play was halted by a thunderstorm. Eala is set to play American ninth seed Amanda Anisimova, who defeated Zeynep Sonmez 6-2, 6-3.