With emotions spilling out, Novak Djokovic called his loss last night to Juan Martin del Potro one of the toughest of his career. Djokovic was seeking a first gold medal in singles but his hopes were immediately dashed in the first round by the Argentine who blasted 29 forehand winners in a 76(4), 76(2) victory.
“No doubt it is one of the toughest losses in my life and in my career, it’s not easy to handle especially now just after the match, the wounds are still fresh, but you gotta deal with it, it’s not the first time I am losing a match but Olympics Games is completely different.”
It was Djokovic’s second straight loss to del Potro at the Olympics.
“It’s obviously very sad and disappointing to go out in a tournament this early but on the other hand I am glad a good friend of mine and someone who has struggled a lot in the last couple of years is back and plays at this level.”
Djokovic will have to regroup for the doubles where he and Nenad Zimonjic could still win the gold.
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