Dino Prizmic delivered the biggest shock of the Italian Open so far by knocking out third seed Novak Djokovic.
Two years after losing to him in their maiden clash at the 2024 Australian Open, Prizmic earned revenge by coming back from a set down to beat the Serb, 2-6, 6-2, 6-4.
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The 20-year-old Croatian, ranked 79th in the world, has been impressive recently, having picked up wins over Matteo Berrettini and Ben Shelton at the Madrid Open.
But the victory over his idol, Djokovic, is the biggest of his career, and now he is through to the third round of the Italian Open.
Following the shocking result, Prizmic took to social media to send a message to the 24-time Grand Slam champion.
Dino Prizmic addresses win over Novak Djokovic on Instagram
In a post on Instagram, Prizmic said: “Another battle on the court with a legend @djokernole , respect always. Thank you all for the support.”
Their first clash at the 2024 Australian Open went the way of Djokovic, who beat the then-18-year-old Prizmic in four sets.
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Prizmic will take on Ugo Humbert next at the Italian Open, whom he has never faced on the ATP Tour before.
Humbert has struggled so far during the clay swing, with the Frenchman having won just two matches so far across the three ATP Masters 1000 events in Monte-Carlo, Madrid and Rome.
He clinched one win in Monte-Carlo before suffering a heavy defeat to world number one Jannik Sinner and then crashed out in his opening match at the Madrid Open.
Novak Djokovic’s results on the ATP Tour so far in 2026
After playing just 13 events in 2025, Djokovic has featured at three events so far during the 2026 ATP season.
His first appearance was at the Australian Open, where he advanced to his first Grand Slam final since Wimbledon 2024.
At Melbourne Park, Djokovic dethroned last year’s champion Sinner, but couldn’t find an answer for Carlos Alcaraz in the title bout.
His next tournament was the Indian Wells Open, where Djokovic earned two wins before bowing out to Jack Draper in the fourth round.
Djokovic’s opening-round exit in Rome marked the first time he has failed to win a match at a tournament since the 2025 Madrid Open.
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