‘Out of his mind’: Djoker rocked by Aussie in huge boilover as world No.83 pulls off epic comeback

Novak Djokovic believes he “should have won” against unheralded Australian Rinky Hijikata, after a shock loss at the Paris Masters ended his bid for an ATP World Tour Finals berth.

Djokovic crashed out in the second round as the 24-time Grand Slam champion lost 2-6, 6-3, 6-3 to Australian qualifier Rinky Hijikata in the second round.

The shock defeat to the world number 83 ended the 39-year-old Serbian’s hopes of qualifying for the ATP Finals later this month.

It is the first time he will miss the year-ending event since 2017, when he was sidelined with an elbow injury.

That was previously the only time he had been absent from an event he has won seven times since 2007.

Djokovic, who has slumped to 11th in the ATP rankings, told reporters after the match his plan for the next few weeks was “just rest”.

“I’m looking forward to it,” he added.

“Nobody loves losing, but it’s just another match.

“I should have won this match – I played well in the first set, but then completely lost control.”

After sailing through the first set, Djokovic soon found himself in a battle.

Hijikata broke Djokovic in the eighth game of the second frame before serving out to force a decider.

The third set ground on until the Serb cracked serving at 3-3 to hand his unfancied opponent a chance at victory, which he duly took with a second break to seal the match in style.

Djokovic, a seven-time champion in Paris, said he felt “disappointment obviously, losing a match that I felt like I was dominating for the first set”.

But he heaped praise on Hijikata for the way he responded.qu

“He was switched on, I wasn’t serving as well and he was just playing out of his mind honestly. He was not missing and keeping the ball low and just a terrific performance,” Djokovic said.

“He played really amazing tennis and it was my fault to let the control of the match go.”

Hijikata, who will face Argentine Tomas Martin Etcheverry in the round of 16, was delighted with the achievement, which continues a career-best 2026.

“I wasn’t sure whether I was going to take the court today, so I was happy I could come out and play,” he said.

“He was playing too good for me for the first set and a little bit. “I was just trying to hang tough as much as I could.

“I was happy to maintain my level for as long as I could.”

The former world number one followed current top-ranked player Alexander Zverev in exiting the Paris Masters in a day full of upsets.

Top-eight seeds Daniil Medvedev, Frances Tiafoe and Alex de Minaur all also met with second-round defeats.