Djokovic destroys racquet on own shoe in shocking defeat

A furious Novak Djokovic has crashed out of Indian Wells after German journeyman Philipp Kohlschreiber pulled off the biggest victory of his career.

Defeating a world No.1 for the first time at age 35, Kohlschreiber won 6-4 6-4 in one hour and 38 minutes to reach the fourth round in California.

Djokovic, who broke a racquet on his own foot after losing the first set, looked physically out of sorts throughout the match.

It is unknown if he was fatigued or if he caught the mystery illness that had already wiped out numerous tennis stars at the tournament.

Kohlschreiber, who knocked out Nick Kyrgios in the second round, will face another rejuvenated veteran – Frenchman Gael Monfils – in the fourth round.

“I think I put out a pretty good strategy on the court,” Kohlschreiber said of his win over Djokovic.

“Very clever serve, good return game – it was a good day.”

The idea that Kohlschreiber only won because Djokovic might have been unwell did not sit well with Kyrgios:

Djokovic was seeking an unprecedented sixth Indian Wells crown in what was his first tournament since the Australian Open.

Despite concerns over his fitness, the Serbian returned to the court for a doubles quarter-final later in the day.

World No.2 continues dominance

Rafael Nadal reigned supreme over Diego Schwartzman once again, surging past the Argentine 6-3 6-1 to reach the fourth round.

Nadal took his record against the world No.26 to 7-0 in emphatic style, never facing a break point in a match lasting an hour and 16 minutes.

“I think I played a very solid match. I did a lot of things well,” he said.

Nadal, a three-time winner of the Indian Wells title, next faces Serbian qualifier Filip Krajinovic, who ousted 14th-seeded Russian Daniil Medvedev 6-3, 6-2.

Roger Federer will take on Stan Wawrinka in the third round in a rematch of the 2017 final won by Federer, his fifth at the tournament.

Federer has dominated the rivalry with his friend and countryman 21-3, with all three of Wawrinka’s victories coming on clay courts.

“Don’t remind me of the stats,” Wawrinka quipped after pulling off a marathon three-set victory over Hungarian Marton Fucsovics.

The match with Federer will be another stern test for Wawrinka, a former world number three who is climbing back up the rankings as he continues his return from double knee surgery.

In other early matches, 67th-ranked Hubert Herkacz of Poland upset sixth-seeded Kei Nishikori of Japan 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 to reach the last 16 of a Masters 1000 event for the first time.

He will play 19-year-old Canadian Denis Shapovalov, the 24th seed who beat 10th seeded Croatian Marin Cilic 6-4, 6-2.

with AFP