Novak Djokovic of Serbia looks at his opponent Roberto Bautista Agut of Spain during the men’s singles semifinals match of the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament at Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center in Shanghai, China, Saturday, Oct. 15, 2016. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
SHANGHAI (AP) — Three-time champion Novak Djokovic lost his temper, then his semifinal match at the Shanghai Masters on Saturday, falling to Roberto Bautista Agut 6-4, 6-4.
The top-seeded Serb struggled to control his errors for the second straight match, spraying groundstrokes all over the court and missing routine drop shots.
He couldn’t control his emotions, either: He smashed his racket into bits after losing the first set — later grabbing a towel to sweep up the smashed racket — and ripped his shirt open in anger during another point. He also argued repeatedly with the chair umpire, continuing the exchange even after the match was over.
Djokovic hadn’t played in a tournament since losing the U.S. Open final last month due to an elbow injury, and the rustiness showed. He had 29 unforced errors and only converted two of nine break point chances.
The 15th-seeded Bautista Agut won his first match against Djokovic in six chances, and is now 6-30 against top-10 opponents.
