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The 2022 season didn't begin on a memorable note for 21-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic. He was denied the chance to defend his Australian Open title after being deported from the country due to his unvaccinated status. He couldn't play a bunch of tournaments due to the same reason, lost his World No. 1 ranking, and suffered more defeats than usual.
But Djokovic still finished with a respectable 42-7 win-loss record for the season that included five titles, with his seventh Wimbledon crown being the biggest of them all. As we look back on what was an extremely eventful year for the Serb, here's a list of the seven players who managed to topple him in 2022:
#1. Rafael Nadal
A year after bowing out to Novak Djokovic in the French Open semifinals, Rafael Nadal turned the tables on his great rival in the quarterfinals of the Parisian Major. Interestingly, both those matches were in four sets.
In 2021, Nadal began in spectacular fashion, bagging the opening set before his performance went downhill. This time, the southpaw didn't repeat those same mistakes. He did concede the second set but rebounded in time to secure a 6-2, 4-6, 6-2, 7-6(4) victory over the Serb.
The match was significant for the two legends in the Slam race. While Djokovic's Roland Garros title defense came to an end, Nadal went on to collect a men's record-extending 22nd Grand Slam.
#2. Carlos Alcaraz
Novak Djokovic was hardly tested as he smoothly made it to the semifinals of the Madrid Masters in his quest for a fourth title in the Spanish capital. Having started his campaign with a breezy win over Gael Monfils, he was given a walkover by Andy Murray in the next round. Poland's Hubert Hurkacz couldn't pose a threat in the quarterfinals, going down in straight sets to the Serb.
Djokovic finally met his match in the last-four stage in the form of men's tennis' newest sensation, Carlos Alcaraz. The 19-year-old had come into the tournament on the back of title wins at the Miami Masters and in Barcelona, and was high on confidence.
Riding on an eight-match winning streak, the youngster played some fearless tennis under pressure to edge the former champion 6-7 (5), 7-5, 7-6 (5). This big win came right after his triumph over Nadal in the earlier round, making him the first player to beat both Djokovic and Nadal on clay in the same tournament.
#3. Andrey Rublev
Not many would have expected Novak Djokovic to lose at home, being the reigning World No. 1. But that is exactly what happened back in April in Belgrade.
It needs to be mentioned, though, that the home hope wasn't at his best throughout the tournament. He struggled against the likes of Laslo Djere, Miomir Kecmanovic and Karen Khachanov, eventually finding a way to beat them all in three sets.
In the final, however, he ran out of steam against World No. 8 Andrey Rublev. Djokovic began on the backfoot, losing the first set to the Russian. Ever the fighter, he bounced back to take the second set in a tie-break. But Rublev refused to give an inch of space in the decider, bageling the Serb to complete a 6-2, 6-7(4), 6-0 win.
#4. Felix Auger-Aliassime
In what was Felix Auger-Aliassime's best season of his career so far, he can count Novak Djokovic as one of his prized scalps. The win, however, came at the high-profile exhibition tournament, the Laver Cup, that was held in September following the US Open.
The young Canadian arrived in London in the middle of a stellar season that saw him finish with four titles. On the final day of the event, he first teamed up with Jack Sock to give Team World a crucial win over the Team Europe pair of Matteo Berrettini and Andy Murray.
Auger-Aliassime then carried the momentum into his singles encounter against Djokovic too. Firing 13 aces, he cruised to a 6-3, 7-6 (3) victory over the Serb that was vital in bringing home Team World's maiden trophy.
#5. Holger Rune
Holger Rune, a fast-rising 19-year-old from Denmark, delivered the unthinkable at the Paris Masters.
Djokovic came into the tournament as the defending champion and was on a nine-match winning streak, having won titles in Tel Aviv and Astana before that.
After coasting to easy wins over Maxime Cressy, Karen Khachanov and Lorenzo Musetti, the 21-time Grand Slam champion was put to a stern test by Stefanos Tsitsipas in the semifinals. The Greek's efforts were not enough to topple the Serb as he came through in a third-set tie-break.
The odds were stacked against the Danish teen, Holger Rune, in the summit clash. He was appearing in his first-ever ATP Masters 1000 final, while Djokovic had won the event six times in the past.
The audacious youngster, however, dug deep and bounced back from losing the first set to secure a stunning 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 win. It denied Djokovic a record-extending 39th Masters title.
#6. Jiri Vesely
Ranked 123rd at the time, Czech player Jiri Vesely stopped a rusty Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals at Dubai in what was the latter's first tournament of the year. After being sent back from Australia, the 35-year-old started his season in February at the ATP 500 tournament, where he had lifted the crown five times earlier.
However, he couldn't progress past the last-eight stage after starting his campaign with wins over Khachanov and Musetti. Vesely's 6-4, 7-6(4) win ended the Serb's reign at the top of the ATP world rankings.
#7. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina
Following his defeat to Vesely, Djokovic went on a two-match losing streak as his clay season didn't have the greatest of starts. He twice led the-then World No. 46 Alejandro Davidovich Fokina by a set and a break but ultimately couldn't hold him off in the second round of the Monte-Carlo Masters.
The Spaniard battled hard before dealing his fancied rival a 6-3, 6-7 (5), 6-1 blow to secure his first-ever top-5 victory.
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