Alejandro Tabilo reveals how he held his nerves to stun Novak Djokovic in Monte Carlo

Alejandro Tabilo became just the third player to register two wins over Novak Djokovic without losing a match.

Alejandro Tabilo reveals how he held his nerves to stun Novak Djokovic in Monte Carlo

Alejandro Tabilo, Novak Djokovic (Image via X/Los Juegos Olimpicos, We Are Tennis)

Novak Djokovic couldn’t take his revenge on Alejandro Tabilo. On Wednesday (April 9) in the second round of the Monte Carlo Masters, Tabilo took an hour and 27 minutes to stun the Serb with a scoreline of 6-3, 6-4 and take a 2-0 head-to-head lead.

Djokovic called his performance the “worst” and apologized to all the fans who had to watch his match. Prior to Monte Carlo, Tabilo had knocked out Nole from last year’s Rome Open. Tabilo, after registering his four top 20 wins, revealed how he held his nerves to upset one of the greatest athletes of all time.

Of course, it’s intimidating. We’re talking about Novak Djokovic, everyone knows how good he is in every aspect, especially mentally. I felt ready to step onto the court and face the challenge. I was going to go out and give it my all no matter what. I was fortunate to start the match very solid, but at the same time, I was also very aggressive.

Alejandro Tabilo told Tennis Channel

Prior to knocking out the 24-time Grand Slam champion, Tabilo also eliminated another Major champion. It was 2014 Monte Carlo Masters winner Stan Wawrinka against whom, Tabilo came from a set down to register a 1-6, 7-5, 7-5 win.

I tried to maintain this approach throughout the match, or at least most of the time until gradually everything started to work. I noticed that I was making him feel uncomfortable at times, so I am happy to have risen to the occasion in those moments.

Alejandro Tabilo added

Tabilo has scheduled a third-round clash with Grigor Dimitrov. The match will be their third meeting on the tour and Tabilo will be aiming to secure his first victory against the Bulgarian. The 33-year-old survived a scare in his second-round match against Valentin Vacherot as he dropped the first set before registering a 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 win.

After beating the Serb, Tabilo registered two consecutive wins for the first time since August last year. His best result at Masters 1000 came at the Italian Open where he reached the semifinals.

Novak Djokovic admits he played horribly against Alejandro Tabilo in Monte Carlo

Novak Djokovic‘s hunt for his 100th ATP title continues. Before the clay swing, Djokovic progressed to the final of the Miami Open which he lost to Jakub Mensik in straight sets. The 37-year-old admitted before the tournament that he didn’t expect much in The Principality but was not at all satisfied with the way he performed in his first match.

Novak Djokovic Monte Carlo Masters 2025
Novak Djokovic (via Instagram/Rolex Monte Carlo Masters)

I expected myself at least to have put in a decent performance. Not like this. It was horrible. I did not have high expectations. I knew I’m going to have a tough opponent and I knew I’m going to probably play pretty bad. But this is bad, I didn’t expect.

Novak Djokovic said at the press conference

The two-time Monte Carlo Masters champion committed 29 unforced errors throughout the match, 14 of which he hit in the first set. The clash with Alejandro Tabilo was Djokovic’s first match on clay since last year’s Paris Olympics which he ended up winning by beating Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinals.

Tabilo has now become just the third player to have faced Djokovic at least twice and never registered a defeat, following Marat Safin and Jiri Vesely. Djokovic will next be preparing for the second clay-court Masters 1000 of the season, the Madrid Open. His coach Andy Murray is expected to join him.

Last year on the clay swing, Djokovic made deep runs in several tournaments and ended up clinching the gold medal at Roland Garros. Djokovic hasn’t yet lifted a title since that victory.