Mariano Navone stepped onto Arthur Ashe Stadium for the first time to face Novak Djokovic for the first time. He left with a 7-6(5), 5-7, 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 victory after four hours and 36 minutes, and with a result he described as the fulfilment of a childhood dream. On the night of August 30, the Argentine turned his 2026 US Open debut into the biggest moment of his career.
The victory also completed a story that had remained unfinished two years earlier. In Bastad in 2024, Navone pushed Rafael Nadal through a four-hour clay-court battle but could not beat him. Against Djokovic in New York, he again faced one of the sport's defining champions and found a different response when the match turned against him.
Navone fell an early break behind in the opening set, recovered and won the tiebreak. He then watched Djokovic take the second and third sets and move ahead in the fourth. Instead of accepting the reversal, Navone raised the quality of his returns, won 11 of the final 14 games and closed with 6-2 and 6-1 sets.
It was Navone's first victory in a five-set match after four previous defeats in the format. Ranked No. 49, he entered with a 12-29 tour-level record on hard courts and faced an opponent who had won 42 of 54 five-setters. The result changes more than his résumé: it gives him evidence to draw on the next time a long match demands patience.
Djokovic dealt with nausea, cramping and pain during the match and received treatment before the fifth set. Navone recognised his opponent's physical difficulty, but still had to manage the weight of standing close to the biggest victory of his career. His post-match reading was measured: he acknowledged the Serbian's condition while emphasising the mental strength required to keep executing his own shots.
The season had already been expanding the Argentine's range. Navone, who reached a career-high No. 29 in 2024, won his first ATP Tour title in Bucharest this year. Beating Djokovic adds a different kind of marker: a first five-set win, a first match on Arthur Ashe and victory over a player who had not lost in the opening round of a major since 2006.
Navone will face Matteo Berrettini in the second round after the Italian defeated Stan Wawrinka 7-6(4), 7-6(3), 6-0. The rematch carries recent history. On August 3 in Montreal, Navone beat Berrettini 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-3 while saving 11 of 12 break points. New York offers another hard court, but now with best-of-five scoring and an entirely different emotional load.
The value of the Arthur Ashe night does not depend on what happens next. Navone has already shown that he can survive five sets, respond after losing the lead and preserve his intent against a 24-time major champion. For a player who spoke about developing both his game and his mind, the biggest victory of his career also becomes a new internal reference point.
Sources consulted: ATP Tour and the US Open/USTA. Reporting updated September 1, 2026.