Will Novak Djokovic Return to Form and Win Elusive Titles Before 2016 US Open?

We’ve become so accustomed to seeing machine-like perfection from Novak Djokovic that when he loses a match it feels like the Earth might stop spinning on its axis.

But he’s not some cyborg sent from the tennis gods to hunt down every trophy in sight—he’s mortal and prone to off days like any other player.

At Wimbledon, Djokovic’s aura of invincibility took a hit with his stunning third-round loss to Sam Querrey. Ranked 41st entering their match, big-serving Querrey dropped 31 aces and kept an error-prone Djokovic at bay, winning 7-6 (6), 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (5) over the course of two days.

His dreams of a third consecutive Wimbledon victory and calendar Grand Slam dashed, Djokovic’s remarkable streak of 28 straight major quarterfinal appearances came to an unexpected end before a shocked Centre Court crowd.

From the start, he just looked off against Querrey, both in terms of his execution and body language. Weeks after his triumphant journey to a first Roland Garros championship, the world No. 1 seemed to lack the requisite energy. 

While Djokovic wouldn’t go into any specifics as to whether injury played a part in his performance, he made it clear to reporters after the match that he needed time off to relax and clear his head:

It’s disappointing, of course. Losing at a Grand Slam hurts more than any other tournament. There’s no doubt about that. Thankfully, I have a family and a life outside tennis. I have plenty to look forward to. I’m obviously going to pay more attention to those things than tennis in the next period. I need it.

It’s been a very successful year so far, but a very …

continue reading in source www.bleacherreport.com