Novak Djokovic suffered a three-set defeat against Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff in the second round of the Swiss Indoors Basel on Thursday, losing 6-7 (4), 7-5, 7-6 (5) after two hours and 36 minutes.
The 39-year-old Serbian missed the opportunity to add another title to his career collection and move closer to Roger Federer’s record of 103 tour-level singles titles. Djokovic, a 24-time Grand Slam champion, had won his 102nd tour-level trophy at the China Open in Beijing earlier this month.
The defeat ended Djokovic’s return to Basel for the first time since 2011. He won the tournament in 2009 by defeating Federer in the final, while the Swiss great beat him in the 2010 final. Federer, who grew up in Basel, won the hometown title a record 10 times and remains one of the most successful players in the event’s history. Djokovic also reached the semi-finals in 2011 before staying away from the tournament for several years.
Struff, ranked 47th in the world, produced a determined performance to eliminate the fourth seed. Djokovic edged the opening set in a tie-break, but the German responded in the second set by converting his first break-point opportunity to level the match at one set apiece. The deciding set remained closely contested, forcing another tie-break. Struff held his nerve in the crucial moments and sealed the victory with his 27th ace, leaving Djokovic unable to mount a final response.
The Basel exit has also dealt a blow to Djokovic’s hopes of qualifying for the season-ending ATP Finals in Turin. He had been looking to collect valuable ranking points through a strong run at the tournament, particularly after Rafael Jodar’s earlier defeat created an opportunity to move closer to the qualification positions. Following the loss, Djokovic trails the Spaniard by 319 points, leaving his qualification prospects dependent on his performance in the remaining tournaments.
Djokovic is expected to return to action at the Rolex Paris Masters, scheduled from November 2 to 8. The ATP Masters 1000 event represents his final tournament before the ATP Finals and could prove crucial to his qualification campaign. He has won the Paris title a record six times and will be looking to make the most of another opportunity to secure the points needed to reach Turin.
Djokovic was not the only leading player to suffer an unexpected defeat in Basel, as top seed Ben Shelton also exited the tournament. The American lost 6-3, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (1) to Swiss wildcard Jerome Kym, who is ranked 222nd in the world. The 23-year-old Kym secured one of the tournament’s biggest upsets and advanced to the quarter-finals, where he is scheduled to face eighth seed Jiri Lehecka.