Alejandro Tabilo reveals what his coaching team asked him straight after he beat Novak Djokovic

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Alejandro Tabilo revealed the conversations had with his team after beating Novak Djokovic at the Italian Open.

The Chilean contested his first meeting against the 24-time Grand Slam champion at the Foro Italico in round three and he produced the best tennis of his career.

He used his heavy lefty forehand to take time away from Djokovic and he drew plenty of short balls from the Serbian who struggled to find his best form.

Tabilo dropped just five games on the way to securing a 6-2, 6-3 win, meaning Djokovic failed to reach the Italian Open quarter-finals for the first time in his career.

What did Alejando Tabilo’s team ask him after beating Novak Djokovic?

Tabilo looked on in disbelief after the World Number One double-faulted on match point to bring the contest to an end.

The World Number 32 basked in the applause from the crowd and was then congratulated by his team who were delighted with his latest achievement.

During his post-match press conference, the 26-year-old described what was going through his mind as he neared victory.

“My team was asking me that just now, asking me when did you realise you could maybe win?” he began. “I was like honestly in no moment was I like okay, I can win this. After the first set I was pretty happy.

“I was playing incredible tennis and just wanted to keep that level. With Novak it’s always so tough with the physical side. I knew it could go to a third set at any moment.

“I think I kind of believed bit by bit when I was already 3-2, 4-3, trying to close out the match. The whole match I was just trying to take it point by point, not even trying to think about the score. I think that helped a lot and helped me play a little bit more relaxed.”

Who does Alejando Tabilo play next?

After securing the upset win, Tabilo will take on Russia’s Karen Khachanov in the round of 16. He defeated Francisco Cerundolo 6-2, 6-4 to book his spot in the next round.

The pair have played just once before at the Libema Open in 2022, which Khachanov won 6-3, 6-3. The 29th seed is in pursuit of his second ATP title after claiming his first at the Auckland Open in January.

Tabilo will be hoping to replicate the electric tennis that saw him break Djokovic’s serve on four occasions in the 68-minute win, and he also did not face a break point.

“It’s incredible,” said Tabilo, who reached the Bucharest semi-finals in April and also won a challenger event in Aix-en-Provence.

“I came on court just looking around, just trying to soak it all in and trying to process everything. I’m just trying to wake up right now. I’m still trying to process everything, so it’s a crazy feeling.”