Twelve-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic says this year has been his toughest in tennis, as he prepares for his first match at Eastbourne.
World number four Djokovic has slipped out of the top two in the rankings for the first time since 2011.
Eastbourne will be the first grass-court tournament the 30-year-old has played before Wimbledon since 2010.
“I’ve been struggling with the level of tennis,” he told BBC tennis correspondent Russell Fuller.
The Serb, who will face Canada’s Vasek Pospisil on Tuesday in the second round, added: “I’ve never experienced this particular situation since I started playing professional tennis. I was very fortunate to experience upwards direction in terms of results and improving the game.
“It’s the first time now in a stretch of seven or eight months that I haven’t won any big tournament.”
Djokovic won the Qatar Open on 8 January but then lost to world number 117 Denis Istomin in the second round of the Australian Open.
He parted with his coaching team – including long-time confidante Marian Vajda – before the French Open in a move he described as “shock therapy”.
But he was beaten at Roland Garros in straight sets by Dominic Thiem, which led seven-time Grand Slam singles champion John McEnroe to question Djokovic’s desire.
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Source: BBC