"My girlfriend and my family were emotional, tearing up" - Alejandro Tabilo on response to his win over Novak Djokovic in Italian Open 3R

Alejandro Tabilo recently opened up about the reactions of his girlfriend and his family following his victory over Novak Djokovic in the third round of the 2024 Italian Open. He also reflected on the challenging journey he and his family endured for him to play tennis professionally.

Tabilo caused a major upset after he defeated Djokovic 6-2, 6-3 in just 68 minutes to move to the fourth round in the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Rome. The Chilean's victory dashed the Serb's hopes of winning his seventh Italian Open title.

With this win, Tabilo made history by becoming the first Chilean to defeat a World No. 1 since Fernando Gonzalez defeated Roger Federer in the round-robin stage at the 2007 ATP Finals.

Tabilo has secured two titles this season, the first at the ASB Classic and the second at an ATP Challenger Tour 175 event in Aix-en-Provence.

Speaking at the post-match press conference following his win over Novak Djokovic, Alejandro Tabilo revealed that he had spoken with his family, girlfriend, and friend back in Chile. He described the conversations with his family and girlfriend as "emotional," with all "tearing up" with happiness.

"At the beginning I couldn't say anything. It was an unbelievable feeling. I had no words. There with my girlfriend and my family, they were both kind of emotional, a little tearing up," Tabilo said.

The World No. 32 also reflected on the "crazy ride" and the "sacrifices" he and his family have made to support his professional tennis career.

"It's been crazy. It's been a crazy ride, especially with my family. So many sacrifices. I left at such an early age. They know what it's taken to get here. Hopefully I can just keep going and keep with this confidence," he added.

Alejandro Tabilo on his win against Novak Djokovic: "In no moment was I like, Okay, I can win this"

Alejandro Tabilo at Internazionali BNL D'Italia 2024

At the aforementioned press conference, Alejandro Tabilo revealed that he never once believed he could win his third-round match against Novak Djokovic.

"Honestly in no moment was I like, Okay, I can win this. After the first set, I was pretty happy. I was playing incredible tennis. Just wanted to keep that level. With Novak, it's always so tough with the physical side. I knew perfectly it could go for a third set in any moment," Tabilo said.

Despite the odds stacked against him, Tabilo stated that he adopted a strategic approach to winning the match by focusing on each point rather than fixating on the overall score.

"I don't know. The whole match I was just trying to take it point by point, not think about the score. Every point was like the start of the match. I think that helped a lot, let me play a little bit more relaxed," he added.

Alejandro Tabilo will next face 16th seed, Karen Khachanov, in the fourth round of the 2024 Italian Open.