World No 1 in men's tennis, Novak Djokovic was dumped out of the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro by Argentine Juan Martin del Porto as he lost in straight sets 7-6 (7-4) 7-6 (7-2) in the opening round on Sunday. It was the Serbian's third straight defeat at the Olympics.
Djokovic had no chance against Juan Martin del Porto who beat him with a powerful forehand on several occasions. Within the first hour of play, Del Potro had already thumped 20 winners, and held his nerve during the tie-break.
A packed court witnessed the encounter and Del Potro even acknowledged their presence during the contest. “The crowd enjoyed it a lot. I was tired, but at the same time I was very happy to be on the court. I wanted to win, but I also wanted to match to go on because everything was wonderful. The crowd itself put on a show in a very respectful way.”, the 27-year-old was quoted as saying by the Guardian. Del Potro will now face Joao Sousa of Portugal in the second round on Tuesday.
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