Novak Djokovic was "one shot away from losing" at 2023 Paris Masters due to stomach bug

Novak Djokovic revealed that his match against Tallon Griekspoor at the 2023 Rolex Paris Masters was "the worst day" of a stomach bug, putting him "one shot away from losing".

In the first round of the ATP Masters 1000 tournament, the World No. 1 moved past Tomas Martin Etcheverry in straight sets before facing World No. 23 Griekspoor in the Round of 16. Many fans expected Djokovic to run away with the victory, so were left surprised when his opponent won the first set 6-4.

Things got worse for the Serbian player when Griekspoor got two break points at 4-4 in the second set, which would have given him the chance to serve for the match. However, Djokovic was able to fight back and ultimately won the second set on a tiebreak before finding success in the decider.

After winning the match in two hours and 39 minutes, Djokovic confirmed that he had been battling a stomach bug for several days, thus shedding some light on why he called a doctor after losing the first set.

"Well it’s hard to have a clear mind when you spent more time on the toilet seat than on the court the last three days," he said, before revealing that the day of the match, Thursday, November 2, was the "worst day" of his sickness.

"Just the energy levels were very low the last few days and I’m taking it day by day. Today is probably the worst day so I’m just hoping that tomorrow will be better, that the curve will start going in the right direction for me," he continued.

The 36-year-old then went on to analyze his performance in the match and how he got through it despite his bug.

"It’s one of these matches where you just have to accept the circumstances, accept how you feel and try to hang in the match.

"Which I’ve done I think. I found the serve in the right moments to get me out of trouble but it was so close, it was probably one shot away from losing the match. But again, that makes this victory mentally for me even more important," he explained.