Novak jovic's 2023 US Open campaign came to a shocking end in the third round as he admitted to playing some of the worst tennis of his career reflecting on his performance jokovic criticized his own serving which was marred by 14 double faults contributing to his 64 64 2-6 64 defeat to Australia's Alexi pin this early exit marked djokovic's worst Grand Slam showing since the 2017 Australian Open his quest for a record 25th Grand Slam singles title was derailed as he struggled to find his form on the court. jovic's defeat was the latest in a series of upsets at this year's US Open following the previous night's elimination of 2022 Champion Carlos alcaraz despite being physically fit and motivated jokovic acknowledged that his game was falling apart he attributed his lackluster performance to mental and physical fatigue likely exacerbated by his recent Olympic gold medal victory in Paris which took a toll on his energy levels.in the 28th seed capitalized on jokovic struggles delivering a strong performance that included 50 winners and a near-perfect serve in volley game the Australian's aggressive play kept jokovic on the defensive especially in crucial moments like the fourth set where poin broke jokovic twice to take a commanding lead although jokovic managed to break back once paperin held his nerve and served out the match to secure the biggest win of his career dot this loss not only dashed jovic's hopes of adding another grand slam to his illustrious career but also marked the first first time since 2002 that none of tennis's big three jokovic Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer won a grand slam title in a calendar year jovic's disappointment was evident as he acknowledged that despite his efforts he was unable to deliver his best on one of the sports biggest stages dot for paperin the victory was a breakthrough moment as he had never previously reached beyond the third round at a major his powerful forehand effective net play and mental toughness in key moments helped him overcome one of the greatest players in tennis history the match was a testament to pin's growth in potential as he demonstrated that he could compete at the highest level. jovic's early exit leaves the men's draw wide open with denil Medvedev now the only former US Open Champion still in the tournament as jokovic heads into the off season the loss Will undoubtedly serve as motivation for him to regroup and come back stronger in 2024 however this year's US Open will be remembered as a rare occasion when one of the games alltime greats faltered on the big stage Paving the way for a new generation of talent to shine