Novak Djokovic’s final preparation for the French Open ended when he lost in the Geneva Open semi-finals to Czech world number 44 Tomas Machac.

World number one Djokovic, who turned 37 this week, was beaten 6-4 0-6 6-1.

The Serb has not reached a final in 2024 before starting the defence of his French Open crown.

The clay-court Grand Slam tournament starts at Roland Garros on Sunday.

Djokovic, who has won a men’s record 24 major titles, entered Geneva to build up court time after a difficult start to the season by his standards.

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After losing in the Australian Open semi-finals to Italy’s Jannik Sinner, Djokovic was knocked out of Indian Wells at the last-32 stage.

He did reach the semi-finals in Monte Carlo at the start of the clay-court swing, but at his next outing at the Italian Open, Djokovic was accidentally hit on the head by a metallic water bottle after his opening win.

Two days later, he lost to 32nd-ranked Alejandro Tabilo of Chile.

Djokovic won his opening match in Geneva against Germany’s Yannick Hanfmann, who beat Andy Murray in his opener, and defeated Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor.

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But he again looked out-of-sorts against Machac and also showed signs of physical discomfort in a one-sided deciding set.

Djokovic will start his bid for a fourth French Open title on either Monday or Tuesday against a French wildcard Pierre Hugues-Herbert.