Novak Djokovic has been in the form of his life, especially in the grand slams this year. He hasn’t lost a single grand slam match this year and looks like he will take home the Wimbledon trophy as well. Every day, experts, commentators, former players, and fans alike are at a loss for words to describe the Serb’s ever-increasing magnificent greatness in the sport. Djokovic has been attracting praise from retired players, Jimmy Connors especially. This adds more value to the G.O.A.T. debate than anything else, as the former players know the game of tennis very well.
Djokovic’s semifinal clash against Jannik Sinner is scheduled to take place tomorrow and before that, just to relax himself and to divert himself from the present, he decided to take some questions about the past eras of players from Serbian journalists.
Novak Djokovic wishes he had played in Jimmy Connors’ era
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When Djokovic won the Australian Open this year, thus tying Rafael Nadal’s record of 22 grand slams, many retired legends acknowledged that it was a great achievement. American tennis legend Jimmy Connors was more enthusiastic in his praise, calling Djokovic, “one f***ing great tennis player” speaking on his ‘Advantage Connors’ podcast. He praised how he is not afraid to go out there and play his game: win or lose.
Djokovic, after five months, has returned the favor for Connors for hailing him as a really great tennis player. Djokovic has said that he would love to have played against Connors in a night session in New York with the awesome buzz of the crowd. But still, he says he feels grateful to be part of the Nadal, Federer and Murray era.
“I would love to have experienced playing Jimmy Connors at a night session in New York ? the way he played and the buzz around the stadium, it was awesome. Still, I am grateful to be part of this era with three of my biggest rivals, who pushed me towards all the success I managed to achieve,” reported by Eurosport.
Not only Connors, he wished he could have played other legends at least quite a few times in his life.
Djokovic also laments he could have played against his coaches
Djokovic rued not having been able to play in the eras of his former coaches like Boris Becker, Andre Agassi, and his current coach Goran Ivanisevic. In a disgruntled tone, Djokovic admitted that he feels very disappointed that he could never play his idol Pete Sampras because of whom he pursued a tennis career.
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Djokovic also in this candid interview said that back in those days, players used wooden racquets which were not as powerful as today at all. He said that they had to slice a lot, volley a lot, and come to the net often, especially on grass. Modern racquets are more powerful and efficient. According to Djokovic, it was Bjorn Borg who revolutionized tennis by staying at the baseline and playing the points.
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While many would consider that 36 is not the ideal age to be playing tennis at the highest level, it is completely different for the world no.2, Novak Djokovic. Though the current generation of players is a talented crop of youngsters, they still can’t seem to find a way to beat Djokovic in important grand slam matches.
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