‘I don’t know’: Djokovic’s answers raise new questions about the future of Roland Garros

PARIS: Novak Djokovic fielded three questions at Friday night’s post-match press conference at Roland Garros. The responses were brief but revealing in what they refused to say.Will we see you back at Roland Garros next year? DJOKOVIC: I don’t know. Would it be okay if this was your last match? DJOKOVIC: I don’t know. With Carlos out and Jannik out, your mind started thinking about the rest…DJOKOVIC: I don’t care. I’ll stop you right there. The twenty-four-time Grand Slam champion had no appetite for questions. They were direct and uncomfortable, much like the challenge he faced on court in the third round of the French Open against 19-year-old Joao Fonseca. Djokovic was in control for long stretches, leading by two sets and later holding a 3-1 advantage in the decisive fifth set. Even deep into the match, in the fourth set, he looked ready to regain command, 4-3 and holding two break points at 15-40. He patiently answered two of those questions 12 months ago after his French Open semi-final loss to Jannik Sinner. He talked about the demands of the surface and how, at this stage in his career, he may have wanted more than he could give.But on Friday night, after being pushed out by the teenager, Djokovic was in no mood to revisit them.It is only the second time he has lost a match in straight sets. His only previous defeat was in the quarterfinals at Roland Garros in 2010, when he lost to Jurgen Melzer. In the fifth hour of a Grand Slam match, body and mind are rarely separate forces. As Djokovic’s legs grew heavy, the confidence that had been the foundation of his tennis began to disappear. For all the questions about the resilience of the 39-year-old’s body, Friday’s defeat to Fonseca felt like a fight lost in mind as much as in muscle. That was the blow Djokovic took at the post-match press conference.Fonseca, who had 11 aces in the match, including five in the fifth set, said: “When I won the fourth set, I was already tired. The fifth set was full of heart. I couldn’t even think. I was just trying to go.” Both men were tired, even though only one of them was 39.Djokovic, playing just his fourth tournament of the year, said: “Having been injured for three months trying to come back, I went almost straight into a Grand Slam on this surface, which is very challenging and takes more time for me to find my groove, my level was really good.” “The end of the fourth was my best chance, 4-3, 15-40. He was playing really good points. He was attacking, serving a lot,” he said. “Looking back at the big moments, could I have done anything differently? You know, you can always say yes, but you just have to say, well done, and congratulate him.”“Maybe my only mistake was at 3-1 in the fifth and serve and when I dropped serve,” Djokovic regretted. That match, five of 16 break points converted, three more points won overall but three less games on the scoreboard, doesn’t quite add up. And yet that may still be reason enough to believe he’ll return to Roland Garros, not to even the score, but to make amends.