Tennis recently reacted to Novak Djokovic blaming his eye infection for his loss in the final of the 2025 Miami Open. The Serb was aiming to secure his 100th ATP Tour title at the tournament in Florida.
Djokovic had triumphed over players such as Rinky Hijikata, Camilo Ugo Carabelli, Lorenzo Musetti, Sebastian Korda, and Grigor Dimitrov to reach the final of the ATP Masters 1000 hard court tournament in Miami, where he faced Jakub Mensik and was defeated 6-7(4), 6-7(4).
Recently, while speaking with TNT Sports before commencing his campaign at the 2025 Monte-Carlo Masters, Novak Djokovic spoke about the eye infection he had been battling. The former World No.1 revealed that the eye infection had surfaced during the semifinals of the Miami Open which in turn had impacted his performance in the final.
“Unfortunately, it started in semifinals day in Miami and so I did struggle with it in the finals. But it’s calming down, I guess. I mean, I’m visiting the doctor later today, so let’s see, should be okay for the for the first round here,” he said.
Novak Djokovic’s attribution of his loss in the final in Florida to the eye infection drew various reactions from tennis fans, who took to social media to voice their opinions on the same.
One fan criticized Djokovic, claiming that his excuse for losing the Miami Open final had “no class” and “dimished” Jakub Mensik’s win. The fan also noted that players like Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal would not resort to such excuses after a defeat.
“of course it affected his miami final performance 😂 😂 no class. Djokovic is diminishing the win of a TEENAGER in the biggest final of his young career. sad. neither Federer nor Nadal would ever do this!!!!!” a fan posted.
Another fan expressed that they want the 24-Grand Slam champion to recover quickly from the eye infection and hope that it does not affect his performance at the 2025 Monte-Carlo Masters.
“Looks pretty bad… 😔 💔 Hope he can get it under control & his vision is not too compromised for MC 🙏,” a fan wrote.
“Oh that’s nasty it looks very sore. Something you can get when you’re run down,” a fan posted.
“the next excuse 😂 and reason for convinient MTOs,” a fan wrote.
Here are some other fan reactions:
“Tired of this guy,” a fan posted.
“I don’t think the dust from the clay will help his eye. Dust can make things more difficult. Not a fan but don’t necessarily want this for him. Not a tennis injury this time,” a fan wrote.
“Why is the even playing Monte Carlo? Take a couple weeks off. I sincerely hope the treatment from doctor helps. I fear Novak is pushing it too hard,” a fan posted.
The former World No.1 last won the Monte-Carlo Masters in 2015 by defeating Tomas Berdych in the final to secure the title.
Who will Novak Djokovic face at the Monte-Carlo Masters 2R?
The Serb pictured practicing at the 2025 Monte-Carlo Masters [Image Source: Getty Images]
The Serb pictured practicing at the 2025 Monte-Carlo Masters [Image Source: Getty Images]
Novak Djokovic is seeded third at the 2025 Monte-Carlo Masters and he will kick off his campaign in the second round after being granted a first-round bye. He will face Alejandro Tabilo in his opening match.
Tabilo opened his run at the ATP Masters 1000 clay court tournament by overcoming wild card Stan Wawrinka with a score of 1-6, 7-5, 7-5 in the first round. This win secured his spot in the second round where he will go head-to-head with the Serb.
Novak Djokovic and Alejandro Tabilo have met once before on the ATP Tour, during the third round of the 2024 Italian Open where Tabilo emerged victorious with a score of 6-2, 6-3.
The winner of this match will advance to face either 15th seed Grigor Dimitrov, wild card Valentin Vacherot, or Nicolas Jarry in the third round of the 2025 Monte-Carlo Masters.