Novak Djokovic's historic Australian Open loss shows signs of vulnerability

The upset made history in multiple other ways as well.

The all-time leader in Grand Slam championships in men's singles play (24) said after the defeat that he was "shocked" with his poor play and it was "one of the worst" matches he'd ever played at a major.

2023 was another dominant year for Djokovic, as he won three of the four Grand Slams, only falling in the Wimbledon finals. That setback and Friday's loss both ended a pair of lengthy streaks for the 36-year-old Serbian.

Though it wouldn't shock anyone to see Djokovic recover from the defeat against Sinner to win one or two, if not all of the three remaining majors in 2024, he's shown some signs of vulnerability lately.

Earlier this month, the "Joker" lost to No. 10 Alex De Minaur (then ranked 12th) in the United Cup quarterfinals, 6-4, 6-4. That result snapped Djokovic's 43-match winning streak in the land down under, a stretch that lasted six years.

The 10-time Australian Open champion probably doesn't have to worry about any player sniffing his record of 24 singles crowns in the near future, with Rafael Nadal (22) likely in his final days of major competition and third-place Roger Federer (20) having retired in 2022. A young core of No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz (20 years old), No. 3 Daniil Medvedev (27) and Sinner (ranked fourth and 22 years old) however, is perhaps ready to usher in a new era.