Novak Djokovic's first-round loss at 2026 US Open ends 23-year 'Big Three' streak

Novak Djokovic was eliminated in the first round of the 2026 US Open on Monday, losing to Argentina’s Mariano Navone 7-6 (5), 5-7, 4-6, 6-2, 6-1, a five-set match that ended after 4 hours and 36 minutes.

For more than two decades every Grand Slam had featured at least one of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic in the second round; that sequence, which began in 2003, has now ended. Roger Federer won five consecutive US Open titles from 2004 to 2008 and Rafael Nadal has captured the Roland Garros title 14 times. Between 2003 and 2023 the three combined for 66 Grand Slam trophies. Federer and Nadal are already retired and Djokovic was the last of the trio still competing.

Djokovic took the second and third sets in New York but could not sustain the advantage as Navone rallied to win the fourth and fifth sets 6-2, 6-1. The Argentine closed out the match 7-6 (5), 5-7, 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 after 4 hours and 36 minutes of play. Djokovic’s defeat came in the tournament’s opening round and eliminated him from the event.

To locate the previous Grand Slam second round without any of the three names present, the record goes back to Roland Garros 2003, a time when Novak Djokovic had not yet played his first Grand Slam main draw match. That 2003 reference point spans 23 years to the present interruption of the streak.

With Djokovic’s early exit, the 2026 US Open proceeds into the second round without Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic having any surviving players in that stage of a major for the first time since 2003.