Five unwanted records Novak Djokovic set in 2026 season

Djokovic’s 2026 season ended after a shocking second-round exit in Paris

Novak Djokovic’s 2026 had real highs. He reached the Australian Open final in January, eventually losing to Carlos Alcaraz in four sets, and won the Beijing title, which kept alive his streak of at least one title in 21 consecutive seasons.

He was also the only player to beat both Jannik Sinner and Alexander Zverev, the top two ranked stars on tour. But the year will still be remembered as one of the Serbian’s worst performances on tour.

Post the Australian Open, Djokovic was a shadow of himself, with his health and fitness rapidly deteriorating. By the time his season ended in Paris, the 39-year-old had set a series of milestones he would rather forget, several of them last seen two decades ago.

Unwanted records Novak Djokovic set in 2026 season

First season without a Masters 1000 quarter-final since 2005

Djokovic’s Masters campaign ended in Paris, where he lost in three sets to Rinky Hijikata in the round of 32. He took the first set comfortably, but the World No. 83 grew into the match and broke him at 3-3 in the decider.

The result means he did not reach a single Masters 1000 quarter-final in a season for the first time since 2005.

Also Read: Who is officially the most googled tennis player since 2004?

The Serbian won only three matches at the ATP 1000 level all year, finishing 3-5, with second-round exits in Shanghai and Paris. That is a stark contrast for a man who is a record 40-time Masters champion.

Missed the ATP Finals for the first time since 2017

Djokovic needed a deep run in Paris to keep his Turin hopes alive. He needed to at least reach the semi-finals but failed to do so. The record seven-time ATP Finals champion will miss the tournament for the first time through failing to qualify since 2017. His last absence came that year, when an elbow injury ended his season after Wimbledon.

First Grand Slam first-round exit in 20 years

The harshest blow came at the 2026 US Open as the four-time champion lost in five sets to Mariano Navone, who was ranked 49th at the time. Djokovic was visibly unwell, and Navone won 11 of the last 12 games.

The defeat snapped a record 78 consecutive first-round wins at the Slams, the longest streak in the Open era. It was his first opening-round loss at any major since the 2006 Australian Open.

Related: Five unwanted records Novak Djokovic set with shock US Open exit

Lowest winning percentage since 2005

Djokovic finished the season with a 22-10 win-loss record, a win rate of 68.75% and his lowest since 2005. It is a steep fall from recent years as he fell significantly down from 39-11 in 2025, and 37-9 in 2024.

The Serbian actually took part in several additional events like Beijing and Paris Masters, but the results were inconsistent, with multiple shocking losses to lower-ranked rivals.

Seven of his 10 defeats came against players ranked outside the top 25, including Dino Prizmic in Rome, Thiago Agustin Tirante in Cincinnati, Hubert Hurkacz in Shanghai, Jan-Lennard Struff in Basel and Joao Fonseca at Roland Garros, where he led by two sets before losing in five.

Hijikata, the world No. 83, was the lowest-ranked of them all. The ironic part is that against the elite he held his own, with a 6-2 record against top-10 opponents at the time of the match.

Out of the top 10 ATP rankings

As a result of this poor turnout, Djokovic will finish 2026 outside the top 10, down from No. 4 at the end of 2025. It will be only the fifth time he has done so, after 2004 (186th), 2005 (78th), 2006 (16th) and 2017 (12th).

The 24-time Grand Slam champion faces a huge challenge at the 2027 Australian Open, where he will defend almost 40% of his total ranking points. Should he fail to do so, the Serbian could risk leaving the ATP top 20 rankings.

For more updates, follow Khel Now on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram; download the Khel Now Android App or IOS App and join our community on Whatsapp & Telegram