Qatar Open: Novak Djokovic stunned on return by Matteo Berrettini - 'Something I've been looking to do'

Novak Djokovic's return from his Australian Open retirement got off to the worst possible start as the Serbian was beaten in the opening round of the Qatar Open by Matteo Berrettini. Djokovic, the third seed in the tournament, was defeated 7-6(4) 6-2 in Doha in his first match since being forced to give Alexander Zverev a walkover during their semi-final in Melbourne back in January.

Novak Djokovic à Doha

Image credit: Getty Images

Novak Djokovic's first match since retiring in the semi-finals of the Australian Open ended in defeat as he was shocked by Matteo Berrettini at the Qatar Open.

Djokovic was forced to offer his hand in defeat to Alexander Zverev during the pair's last-four encounter in Melbourne, with the 37-year-old struggling with a muscle tear that he had sustained in his sublime victory over Carlos Alcaraz in the quarter-finals.

The Serbian, the third seed in Doha, was beaten in straight sets by his mercurial Italian opponent, with Berrettini moving into the second round 7-6(4) 6-2.

Tennis

Djokovic admits 'slap from reality' as he says suspension cloud will 'always follow' Sinner

13/11/2025 at 17:54

Berrettini, not seeded for the ATP 500 event, recorded his first victory over a top 10 player since January 2023, and he will face Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor in the second round, where he will be out for revenge after Griekspoor beat Berrettini in the opening round of Rotterdam earlier in February.

The Italian, who lost to Djokovic in the 2021 Wimbledon final, needed just over an hour and a half to defeat the 24-time Grand Slam champion, winning 85% of his first serve points, saving three break points en route to a first-set tiebreak advantage.

He earned an immediate mini-break in the opening point, and bounced back straight away from a blip at 4-3 to regain his advantage and close out the breaker 7-4.

He continued that momentum into the second, breaking in his first return game, before he sealed the double break - and the match - at the second time of asking to move into round two.

Speaking afterwards, Berrettini said that he had finally achieved something he had never done before - beat Djokovic.

"It's something that I've been looking to do," he said.

"I played against him in the most important tournaments on tour, had the honour and the pleasure to play against him. I wish I could have won one of those matches as well.

"I worked really hard to be back here, to be back at this level. I knew my level was high. I just needed matches and matches like this. All the hard work that I've been putting in the last months, in the last days, it worked pretty well today. I'm really happy with my performance. I'm really happy because I enjoyed my time out there, which is the most important thing."

Berrettini returned from a six-month injury lay-off to claim three tour-level titles in 2024, in Marrakech, Gstaad, and Kitzbuhel, and is currently ranked world No. 35.

Djokovic, meanwhile, seemed to be moving freely in his first match back, having confirmed that Andy Murray will remain his coach for the foreseeable future before his defeat to Berrettini.

Stream top tennis action live and on-demand on discovery+.

Tennis