After surprising Djokovic, how far can the kid, Nardi, go in the BNP Paribas?

INDIAN WELLS — The tennis term lucky loser is a contradictory description, something everyone hopes to be, lucky, and something abhorrent in sports, a loser.

We hear it used mostly in club competition, recreational events. This week it was prevalent at the BNP Paribas Open — mostly because the player, Novak Djokovic, was a loser but hardly lucky.

He was defeated, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 Monday night by Luca Nardi, a 20-year-old Italian who was almost as surprised as everyone else, calling it a miracle.

Nardi will advance to play Tommy Paul, part of a generation which was to revitalize American tennis to where it was in the glory days of Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi and pals.

But making predictions in any sport, especially tennis where there may just be someone new and maybe better each time you double fault, is a dangerous thing.

This BNP was going to belong to Djokovic. If it didn’t belong to Rafael, who withdrew because of that hip injury. If it didn’t belong to Stefano Tsitsipas, who was beaten, 6-2,6-4 by Jiri Lehecka. If it doesn’t belong to Carlos Alcaraz, who defeated Fábián Marozsán, 6-3, 6-3, it won’t belong to Djokovic certainly. The 36-year-old Serb, was entering a tournament for the first time since dropping the Australian semifinal to Sinner. Sinner’s resume lacked only a Grand Slam. The shock was the match against Nardi.

The kid missed out in qualifying for the BNP. Then because Tomás Martín Etcheverry of Argentina pulled out, Nardi, instead of going home, went into the tournament.

In tennis, an individual sport, if you get your chance you have to take advantage of it. And Nardi did big time. He moved Djokovic around the court and hit some big passing shots.

“I made some really terrible unforced errors,” said Djokovic. “Just quite defensive tennis and you know, not much on the ball in the 3^rd (set), he just stepped in and he used the time that he had.”

“He was playing more free and more aggressive than I did, and going for his shots and that break on 3-2 was enough.”

Djokovic said he is more selective with his schedule. 

“I do play fewer tournaments. So of course it is not a great feeling when you drop out early in the tournament, and especially here, I haven’t played here for 5 years. I really wanted to do well, but that wasn’t meant to be. We move on.”

Literally, he will be going to the second tournament Sunshine Slam, in Miami, eager to show he still is the best and can handle those young kids.