Novak Djokovik
Novak Djokovic, apparently, was deflating. The desire to do something that a person has not done in more than half a century took away a lot from him physically and emotionally.
1 ranked Djokovic admitted so much after crying during the last change of her 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 loss to Daniil Medvedev in the final of the US Open.
What the 34-year-old from Serbia was unwilling to do after coming up short – one win short – in his attempt to win all four Grand Slam tournaments in a single season was to accept anything in the long run.
A new batch of talent is making a push toward the top of the game, but he’ll keep going.
Yes, Djokovic had already spoken about giving his all against No. 2 Medvedev on Sunday, calling it “the last match of my career”.
And, yes, Djokovic came flat out and got out. Not the best combination for Djokovic: he had a day off; Medvedev had a great one. So, yes, Djokovic found the whole thing disappointing.
Of course he did. It is only natural. To play so well and give so much, for so long, under an intense spotlight and burdened with pressure from outside and inside, is exhausting. No one had won the first three major titles in a year since Rod Laver in 1969, let alone the entire quartet.
Djokovic said, ‘It was enough to handle it.
He won 27 of the 28 required for a true Grand Slam. He just couldn’t finish 28th.
Djokovic said, ‘A part of me is very sad. “It’s a tough one to swallow, this loss, I mean, judging by whatever was on the line.”
But he will play again, and he will resume his job to overtake rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal and break his three-way tie for the most championships earned by a man, 20. No one should be surprised, or will not, 21 comes just a few months from now for Djokovic at next year’s Australian Open, a tournament he has won nine times.
Even though the three men who faced him in a Grand Slam final in 2021 are in their 20s – Medvedev, 25, at the Australian Open and the US Open; No. 3 Stefanos Tsitsipas, 23, at the French Open; 7 Matteo Berrettini, 25, and other, young players at Wimbledon are also climbing the ladder, with Djokovic unwilling to step aside.
“The transition was inevitable,” Djokovic said on Sunday, before adding: “The big guys are still hanging out.”
Well, he definitely is.
Federer, who turns 40 on August 8, and Nadal, 35, both missed the US Open at the end of the season due to injuries.
It will be interesting to see how Federer’s latest knee operation and Nadal’s chronic pain in his left leg affect him as he moves forward.
And it will be fun to see if the group is a decade or more his junior, including 2020 US Open champion Dominic Thiem, 28, and the man he beat in the final and Djokovic to advance to the five-set semifinals on Friday. was made,
Tokyo Olympic champion Alexander Zverev, 24, as well as young men like 21-year-old American Sebastian Korda and 20-year-old Jenson Brooksby can also make serious progress and score a major – or major – victory.
Medvedev talked about his hopes of winning a Grand Slam after taking a 0-2 win in the last final on Sunday night – and doing so against Djokovic, of all people, all season, this season.
“For my future career, knowing that I lost 27-0 in a year at Grand Slams … is sweet and gives me confidence for what’s to come,” Medvedev said.
Also should.
Djokovic already has such reserves of confidence. He goes to every Grand Slam tournament seeing himself with a trophy. It’s unlikely to change because of a shock.
“I still want to go ahead, try to win more Slams, play for my country,” he said. “Those are the things that inspire me the most at this point, I guess.”
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