GENEVA — Novak Djokovic will defend his French Open title in Paris still without a trophy this season after losing in the Geneva Open semifinals Friday.
Tomas Machac beat Djokovic 6-4, 0-6, 6-1 in the last clay-court event to prepare for Roland Garros, where main-draw play starts Sunday.
Djokovic’s record in 2024 dropped to 14-6 overall and 0-3 in semifinals, including at the Australian Open against Jannik Sinner.
Machac, a Czech player who is ranked 44th, took his first match-point chance, which came on Djokovic’s serve, and clinched when the top-ranked Serb pushed a backhand long.
It was the fifth time Djokovic had his service broken, and he made 27 unforced errors.
“If you play against Novak, you just hope and try to play your best and see how it looks,” Machac said in an on-court interview.
Djokovic warmly greeted Machac at the net and smiled as he walked off the court applauding the fans.
Machac will play the final Saturday against two-time Geneva champion Casper Ruud or Flavio Cobolli.
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