Novak Djokovic exits Madrid Open after shock defeat to Matteo Arnaldi

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Novak Djokovic’s miserable start to the clay-court season continued with a second-round defeat to world No. 44 Matteo Arnaldi at the Madrid Open.

The 6-3, 6-4 loss means Djokovic is 0-2 on clay in 2025, following his straight-sets defeat to Alejandro Tabilo at the same stage of the Monte Carlo Masters in Monaco a couple of weeks ago. Djokovic, the world No. 5, didn’t lose his first match at a tournament once in 2024. He has done so four times in 2025.

It’s a historically bad run of form for him, and while Arnaldi was inspired in the Spanish capital, it’s a match that Djokovic will be desperately disappointed to have lost. No one has ever been able to raise themselves for Grand Slams like the 24-time champion, but at 37 — and more likely than not to be outside the top four seeds at May’s French Open — his path to a fourth Roland Garros title looks more and more of a long shot. Against Arnaldi, a 24-year-old Italian who grew up idolising Djokovic, he was labored in his movement and his decision-making at key moments and racked up unforced errors — 32 in total — that gave his opponent a helping hand when things got tight.

Djokovic was broken in his first service game, as three errors from 40-30 up handed Arnaldi the early initiative. Djokovic broke back immediately but despite pushing for another break to take the lead in the opening set, he couldn’t find it. Instead, he again self-destructed when serving down 3-4. Again he held a game point at 40-30, but a missed backhand down the line preceded consecutive double faults to give Arnaldi a 5-3 lead and a chance to serve for the set which he took.

That prompted Djokovic’s coach, three-time Grand Slam champion Andy Murray, to tell his player to wait for the right ball before pulling the trigger down the line. It was a shot that was always the bellwether for how confident Murray was feeling, and in Madrid it betrayed the fact that Djokovic was not seeing the ball well at all. Five games into the second set Djokovic had lost seven of 13 points in which he had used the shot, five of which were errors.

He was struggling with his movement too, looking uncertain on his feet and even stumbling to the floor when Arnaldi hit a wrong-footing forehand to hold for 2-2 in the second set. Arnaldi sensed his opponent was a step slow and frequently drew him forward with drop shots.

That didn’t stop Djokovic frequently making inroads on his opponent’s serve, but he kept undoing his hard work with uncharacteristic missed returns, especially on the backhand side: mistakes that were once collectors’ items from the greatest returner in the history of the sport. When Djokovic did string a few points together, Arnaldi was able to raise his level, clinging onto his serve to hold for 3-3 in the second set.

Arnaldi appeared energised by the escape, speaking animatedly to his box as he prepared to receive in the next game. From there he produced defense that even Djokovic would have been proud of, breaking from 30-30 after a pair of epic rallies. On both occasions, Djokovic looked completely in control of the point, but Arnaldi hung on and drew a missed volley and then one right into his hitting zone to steal the break and open up a path to victory.

Not to be outdone, Djokovic produced some equally extraordinary defense of his own in the next game, forcing a disbelieving Arnaldi to net a forehand in a rally that he thought he’d won on a handful of occasions. Somehow Arnaldi raised himself again, and hit a forehand pass beyond a stunned Djokovic to save a second break point. The third came and went too, and when Arnaldi held from 0-40, he had broken his opponent’s resistance. That was perhaps more revealing than any of the service games Djokovic lost, given how much of his career has been built on breaking opponents’ spirit even when they hold an advantage.

A couple of games later it was all over, and Arnaldi had his second win against a top-5 opponent. Djokovic smiled gracefully as he walked towards the net, but this is a defeat that will take a while to process.

(Photo: Clive Brunskill / Getty Images)

This news was originally published on this post .

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