Novak Djokovic enters the French Open amid a run of detached claycourt type however few can be shocked to see the Serbian nice hoist the Musketeers’ Trophy for a 3rd time.
With Rafa Nadal sidelined with damage, Djokovic has the possibility to maneuver previous the Spaniard within the grand slam race and take a report twenty third main title, which might strengthen his case within the GOAT (Greatest Of All Time) debate.
Even with Nadal absent, Djokovic could have one other Spaniard on his thoughts within the type of 20-year-old Carlos Alcaraz, a younger man in a rush to forge his personal path to greatness.
The US Open champion is narrowly favoured by bookmakers over Djokovic to win the French Open and the Serb charges him extremely.
“He’s the player to beat on this surface, no doubt,” Djokovic stated in Rome.
Despite profitable at Roland Garros two years in the past and in 2016, clay has by no means been Djokovic’s favorite floor, its tempo and variation much less suited to his attacking sport.
His build-up has been clouded by an elbow damage which he stated was bothering him earlier than he withdrew from the Madrid match.
His return at Rome ended within the quarter-finals with defeat by Holger Rune, the Danish wunderkind who additionally upset him on a Paris laborious courtroom final yr.
Having lengthy stalled the rise of the following era of males’s tennis in live performance with the opposite members of the ‘Big Three’ – Nadal and Roger Federer – Djokovic conceded their time had come.
“A new generation is here already,” he stated after his Rome defeat.
At 36, and having seen Nadal’s struggles, Djokovic could really feel time is in opposition to him.
However, the grand slam aura stays.
Apart from Nadal, the one participant that has crushed him on the majors since 2020 is Russian Daniil Medvedev on the 2021 US Open ultimate.
His former coach Boris Becker believes it will be silly to put in writing him off.
“As long as he’s healthy, and as long as he wants to play, he is always going to be one of the favourites to win a Grand Slam,” the German instructed The Guardian.
Even when neither 100 per cent match nor wholesome, Djokovic’s starvation for achievement and unbelievable psychological energy are usually sufficient to drag him by.
At the Australian Open he battled a hamstring tear and loads of off-court drama to say his tenth title at Melbourne Park in January.
Young weapons be warned.
Source: www.perthnow.com.au
