In a revelatory new Amazon Prime documentary titled “Novak Djokovic: The Wolf In Winter”, the Serbian great’s wife Jelena talks about his perfectionist self-doubt. “He carries that burden that he’s never enough. No matter how much he does, it will never be enough.”

Djokovic echoes the sentiment, saying, “I am always looking to be more — better, faster, stronger. Oftentimes I feel like I am imprisoning myself.”

This exacting measure of self-worth has helped make him the world’s most decorated men’s tennis player. It has also put his body through relentless toll and sacrifice. The abject collapse on Monday was a stark example of the latter.

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Djokovic popped pills, grimaced in pain and vomited into a towel bin as Mariano Navone, 25, powered past him in the US Open first round. The scoreline read 7-6 (7-5), 5-7, 4-6, 6-2, 6-1. The visuals spoke louder.

Novak Djokovic in tears as the realization dawns upon him that Father Time has finally caught up pic.twitter.com/5uOfg2Em30

— Bastien Fachan (@BastienFachan) August 31, 2026

Concerning signs

The first concerning sign for camp Djokovic emerged on his serve at 4-2 in the opening set, when he double faulted at 0-40 down to be broken. The challenge was going to come from within, not the other end, this time.

Djokovic was clearly not himself on court. He was moving gingerly and repeatedly losing balance while shaping up for groundstrokes.

After a topsy-turvy spell of 11 games, the net came in the way of his forehand down the line, forcing a tiebreak. There was a glimpse of his usual self on the 10th point of tiebreak; he followed up a series of probing shots with a court-opening backhand and a crosscourt forehand winner. Two points later, the net impeded Novak’s forehand again, and the set went Navone’s way.

Novak Djokovic struggling with fitness during US Open 2026 first round match.

By then the 39-year-old was shaking his head even after clinching points, as if imploring his body to respond. At 5-5 in Set 2, he won a punishing rally and had to use both hands to steady himself upon squatting. He picked up his racquet and stayed crouched in a pensive moment. His brain was formulating the path ahead; the legs telling him to stop.

Novak Djokovic with a heartfelt moment to the crowd after his 1st round loss at the U.S. Open

He struggled with his body tonight, but kept fighting for 4 hours & 36 minutes at 39 years old

Leaving with grace and & nothing but love

What a legend. 🥹 pic.twitter.com/wDO16xpKsa

— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) August 31, 2026

But the brain won temporarily as Djokovic racked up six straight points to snare the second set. Navone got a bit flustered and his unforced errors crept up. The physically struggling Serbian saw the opening and gleefully took it, breaking in Game 9 en route to claiming the third set too.

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Body breakdown

Djokovic, it seemed, had turned the corner yet again in a career full of such pain-defying ‘miracles’. He was hitting the ball sweetly as ever. Another break point arrived, and he unleashed a line-kissing backhand to set the tone early in the fourth set. The mind was willing him on.

But the body had had enough. His back began aching, legs began cramping. Imbalance returned to the 24-time Major winner’s groundstrokes as he was barely able to stand on his feet for the rest of the match.

A set and a break of serve up, Djokovic lost 11 of the subsequent 12 games. The one game he won was a service hold in the fifth set, following which tears flowed down his cheeks. Tears of relief, pain or helplessness: who is to say?

Mariano Navone defeats 24-time Grand Slam Champion Novak Djokovic in five sets. pic.twitter.com/BE8Dn3qC8j

— US Open Tennis (@usopen) August 31, 2026

The crowd saw his vulnerability and spurred him on. Chants of ‘Nole, Nole’ reverberated across the Arthur Ashe Stadium as the troubled titan sobbed and stood with arms akimbo. He returned to the moment and faced up to the Argentine, perhaps resigned to his fate.

Soon enough, Navone lunged to deposit a short return back on his first match point. A rueful smile appeared on Djokovic’s tired face as he trudged over to congratulate the unseeded victor.

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‘Despised every moment’

“I think it was obvious that it was an awful feeling on the court for me…I pretty much despised every moment that I spent on the court,” a spent Djokovic would later admit to reporters. His 70 unforced errors bore witness.

“I don’t want to take too much out of Mariano’s win. Congrats to him, he’s a nice guy and a fighter, but I didn’t enjoy myself.”

Novak Djokovic exhausted against Argentina’s Mariano Navone during the first round of the U.S. Open.

The corporeal issues that floored Djokovic are not new. He has thrown up “pretty much every match this year”, and is yet to fathom what’s wrong. “My whole body starts to collapse, basically cramping and pain. Yeah, the back just gave up in the end and shoulder, and I couldn’t close it out.”

Djokovic said he will try to fix what’s going on and “how far I can go this way”. He has steadfastly refused to put an expiry date on his career, rhetorically asking in the aforementioned documentary: “Why would I talk about retirement when I still keep proving to myself that I can still win?”

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This belief may or may not fade with Monday’s outing, but that is unlikely to stall his efforts of ending a three-year Grand Slam drought. Until physically impossible, the toil is expected to continue, in training and on court. For more than anybody else, Djokovic loves to prove himself wrong.