'I haven’t played well at all this year,' Novak Djokovic doesn’t consider himself a favourite for Roland Garros after losing to Tomas Machac

Of course I'm worried. I haven't played well at all this year, apart from a few matches here and there. Things are what they are. I don't see myself as a favorite in Paris. I will try to take the matches one after the other. I didn't have a great night, and today was tough. I had horrible feelings during the first part of the match. I don't want to take any credit away from Tomas (Machac), who deserved his victory, but I don't know what to think of this match. I prefer to forget it. Novak Djokovic said in his post-match interview

The week in Geneva started memorably for Djokovic, who celebrated his 37th birthday after defeating unseeded German Yannick Hanfmann in the opening round. The World No.1 was presented with a cake by the Geneva organizers after his win.

However, a defeat in the Geneva semi-finals means he drops to 14-6 in terms of his 2024 win-loss record. He is also 0-3 in the semi-finals this year, having lost in the last four of the Australian Open and Monte Carlo earlier this year.

Novak Djokovic on thin ice before Roland Garros

Defending French Open champion Novak Djokovic is going into the second Grand Slam of the year with a lot of problems. The Serbian simply hasn’t been able to find an extra gear on the court like the world is so accustomed to seeing him do time and again.

Djokovic goes into Roland Garros without winning an ATP title for the first time since 2018. In fact, he is yet to play a final this year after losing in the semi-finals of the Australian Open, Monte Carlo, and Geneva.

However, one positive for him is that he has avoided Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner in his draw at the French Open. The three-time French Open champion won’t face Rafael Nadal or Alexander Zverev until the semi-finals, as they are projected to play in the first round in Paris.

The problem is that, with the way Djokovic is playing at the moment, and especially if he plays like he did in Geneva, it doesn’t really matter if he has a brutal draw or not. The Belgrade native knows he needs to put things on the right track as the most pivotal time of 2024 awaits. After the French Open, the 24-time Grand Slam champion will play at Wimbledon before returning to Paris for the Olympic Games. After that, he will turn his focus toward the US Open, where he is the defending champion.