Novak Djokovic receives major ranking boost despite disappointing outing at Indian Wells

Former world number one Novak Djokovic has received a major ranking boost despite having a disappointing outing at the Indian Wells. The 37-year-old is regarded as the greatest player in the history of men’s tennis in the singles category in the Open era, having won as many as 24 Grand Slam titles.

Djokovic was recently featured at the Indian Wells, where he was knocked out after losing in the round of 64 to Netherlands’ Botic van de Zandschulp with a score of 6-2, 3-6, 6-1. That was his second consecutive defeat in the first round of an ATP event. Previously, he was knocked out of the Qatar Open after losing to Italy’s Matteo Berrettini in straight sets with a score of 7-6, 6-2.

However, despite those performances, Djokovic has now received a ranking boost. The Belgrade-born star, who is currently seventh-ranked in the ATP rankings, is set to keep his spot after defeats to Norway’s Casper Ruud, Russia’s Andrey Rublev and Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas. Ruud lost to America’s Marcos Giron in the round of 64 with a score of 7-6, 3-6, 6-2. Rublev also lost at the same stage to Italy’s Matteo Arnaldi in straight sets with a score of 6-4, 7-5. Tsitsipas lost in the round of 16 to Denmark’s Holger Rune in straight sets with a score of 6-4, 6-4. After losing in his tournament opener, Djokovic admitted that he is struggling with a lack of motivation to play in different ATP events.

“Yeah, hard to appreciate anything now, really,” said Djokovic. “I’m disappointed that I lost, but I guess, you know, if you put things in that larger perspective, of course I’ve had an incredible career. Being consistent for so many years, obviously you have high expectations of yourself. Things are different obviously for me the last couple of years. I’ve been struggling to play on the desired level. Every now and then, I have a couple of good tournaments, but, you know, mostly it’s really a challenge. It’s a struggle for me. So it is what it is. You know, I guess nothing can prepare you for that moment, in a sense. You have to experience it and try to deal with it in the best possible way.”