"I'm still hot-headed, need to take a day or two" - Novak Djokovic casts doubts on Miami Open participation after shock Indian Wells 3R loss

Novak Djokovic has raised doubts about his participation in the Miami Open following his unexpected third-round defeat at Indian Wells.

Djokovic suffered a surprising defeat at the hands of Italian lucky loser Luca Nardi, with a score of 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. This loss shattered Djokovic's hopes of clinching an unprecedented sixth title at the BNP Paribas Open.

This loss ended the Serb's 11-match winning streak at ATP Masters 1000 events. This streak had begun following his title wins at the 2023 Western & Southern Open and the Paris Masters.

This defeat also marked the World No. 1's first loss to a player ranked outside the top 50 since his defeat to Taro Daniel, who was ranked World No. 109 at the 2018 Indian Wells tournament.

During the post-match press conference, Novak Djokovic expressed uncertainty about his participation in the upcoming Miami Open, an event he has won six times - in 2007, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, and 2016.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion revealed that he was still a little "hot-headed" from his loss to Nardi, and that is why he would take a day or two to deliberate on whether he would compete in the Miami ATP 1000 tournament.

"Let's see, obviously 10 minutes ago I was on the court, so I'm still hot-headed a bit. I need to take a day or two and then see what I want to do next," he said.

Djokovic explained that he chooses to participate in fewer, more selective tournaments, which is why he was particularly focused on performing well at Indian Wells where he was making a comeback after five years.

"I do play fewer tournaments, so I'm more selective with my schedule. So of course it's not great feeling when you, you know, drop out very early in the tournament, and especially here, I haven't played five years. I really wanted to do well. But wasn't meant to be. We move on," he added.

Novak Djokovic: "Luca Nardi played great, deserved to win"

BNP Paribas Open 2024

At the aforementioned press conference, Novak Djokovic talked about his match against 20-year-old Luca Nardi. He congratulated Nardi for his impressive performance and acknowledged his defeat at the hands of the young Italian.

Djokovic praised Nardi's skills, noting his strong playing ability and agility on the court, describing the World No. 123 as "very talented."

"Congrats to him for particularly in the third set playing some great, great tennis. I watched him play. I didn't know much about him, but I watched him play, and I knew he possesses great quality tennis from the baseline, especially the forehand side. Moves well. Very talented," he said.

The World No. 1 admitted that Luca Nardi was the deserving winner of their match. Reflecting on his performance, the Serb expressed disappointment, admitting that his level of play was "really, really bad."

"He got in as a Lucky Loser to main draw, so he really didn't have anything to lose, so he played great. Deserved to win. I was more surprised with my level. My level was really, really bad. That's it, you know. These two things come together. He's having a great day; I'm having a really bad day. Results as a negative outcome for me," he added.

Luca Nardi will next go up against home favorite Tommy Paul in the fourth round at Indian Wells.