Djokovic also stumbled against Lajovic on Banja Luka’s clay

Novak Djokovic still can’t find a pulse clay court in these first tournaments of the tour before Roland Garros. After his loss to Lorenzo Musetti last week in the round of 16 of the Monte Carlo Masters 1000, the Serbian stumbled on Friday in the tournament of Banja Luka (Bosnia Herzegovina) against his countryman Dusan Lajovic.

It was in several quarterfinals where he paid off 6-4 and 7-6(6) against Lajovic in a long match of less than two and a half hours. So, after his first victory suffered against Van Assche, Djokovic could not continue his attempt to find good feelings.

In large part, because he has been so wrong on the points where he usually makes the difference, the decisive ones. Djokovic finished the match with 1/16 of the break balls in his favora sign that others were comfortable for most of the game but also failed at key moments.

The complete opposite of Lajovic. The world number 70 broke Djokovic’s serve in the third game of the first set and from then on he was on a survival exercise, suffering badly in his service games, but coming out on top. Even until 4-4, when he saw how ‘Nole’ got the break back. Although, there was also something that was inappropriate for him, Djokovic immediately gave up another counter-break to lose 6-4 the first set after having three other choices to force 5-5.

The tonic was maintained in the second set, with Djokovic uncomfortable and a Lajovic who also had several options to get ahead on the scoreboard. Especially, with 4-4, when he has 0-40 saved by the world number 1. So, a tie-break was reached with Djokovic 6-3 up and where they gave up five straight points to lose it 8-6.

In this way, ‘Nole’ closed his first two stops on clay, in Monte Carlo and Banja Luka, without a good feeling. His next stop in his attempt to regain good feelings for Roland Garros is Madrid.