Novak Djokovic Falls to Jan-Lennard Struff in Basel

Novak Djokovic saved one match point with an ace of his own, then watched the third one go by him the same way. Jan-Lennard Struff hammered an ace down the middle to finish off a 6-7 (4), 7-5, 7-6 (5) upset of Djokovic in the second round of the Swiss Indoors in Basel on Thursday, the AP reported via ESPN.

That ends Djokovic's shot at title No. 103 this week, which would have tied Roger Federer's career total in Federer's own hometown. Only Jimmy Connors, with 109, has more than Federer.

The Upset in Numbers

Struff is 36 and ranked 47th in the world. Djokovic is 39 and still the record holder with 24 Grand Slam singles titles. He had just won his 102nd tour title earlier this month in Beijing, so he came into Basel in form.

It did not matter. Struff took the first set to Djokovic in a tiebreak, Djokovic answered by taking the second, and the third went all the way to another breaker. Struff needed three match points to close it out. When the last serve went down the T, Djokovic could not get a racket on it.

For a player with Djokovic's résumé, losing in a third-set tiebreaker to a big server is the kind of night that can happen to anyone. It still stings when the Federer number was right there.

Why Basel Mattered

This was Djokovic's first trip to Basel in 15 years. He won the title here in 2009, beating Federer in the final. Federer won the rematch the next year in the city where he grew up and once worked as a ballboy, and he lifted the Basel trophy a record 10 times in his career.

So the setup was perfect: Djokovic tying Federer at 103 in the one building most associated with him. Instead, Djokovic stays at 102 and the chase moves to another week.

What Is Next in Basel

Struff moves on to the quarterfinals and faces Nuno Borges on Friday. The rest of the draw is loaded. Second-seeded Arthur Fils survived Alex Michelsen in a third-set tiebreaker and gets sixth-seeded Taylor Fritz, who beat Denis Shapovalov 6-4, 6-3. Eighth-seeded Jiri Lehecka beat Daniel Altmaier and awaits the winner of top seed Ben Shelton and Swiss wild card Jerome Kym.

With Djokovic out, the crowd favorite spot is open, and Shelton is the top name left in the field.

Smacktok Pick Lean

We lean higher on Struff's aces against Borges on Friday. He just beat Djokovic with his serve, saving his best for the final point, and that is the shot that has carried him through two rounds this week. Borges will need to get a lot of returns back to keep this from turning into another tiebreak fight. If Struff serves like he did Thursday, the 36-year-old has a real chance at a semifinal run in Basel.