Novak Djokovic failed to reach the Wimbledon final, having been quite easily defeated by Jannik Sinner – 3:6, 3:6, 6:4. The best tennis player of today was in an inferior position throughout the match compared to the Italian and it seems he was not physically ready for such a duel.
Expert Analysis
Radmilo Armenulić, former coach of our country’s Davis Cup team, tennis legend, and renowned expert, thoroughly analyzed Novak Djokovic’s performances at this year’s Wimbledon for Kurir. The Serb had a great desire to reach his 25th Grand Slam trophy and eighth in London, but he did not succeed.
Novak Djokovic seemed helpless in the semi-final against Sinner.
– Let me first say one thing, tennis has become a boring sport. There are no more attractive points, it’s played from the baseline, everyone waits for the opponent’s mistake. No beautiful volleys, serves, attractive moves… As for Novak, he no longer has his game, he’s out. There’s no change in his game. He constantly plays from the baseline, boring… No backhand parallel, doesn’t go to the net, no volley… It would be good for him to talk to his coaches, to change something – Radmilo Armenulić told Kurir and added:
– If he continues like this, he will slowly decline. It would not be good for the best player of all time to lose to some unknown players from whom he previously didn’t even lose a game. I hope he sees that he needs changes.
Djokovic was injured, which he admitted after the match. He had a problem with his leg muscle.
– If he’s injured, then he shouldn’t play! He shouldn’t have gone out on the court. He knew he wouldn’t perform at his maximum. That’s why he should have retired. That’s the rule in tennis and sports. You shouldn’t play at any cost. Why? Because he’s embarrassing himself, and in some games his play was shameful. And that’s not good for him. He is the best tennis player of all time, he must preserve his reputation.
Too many mistakes
Novak Djokovic made a lot of mistakes, not only in the semi-final match against Sinner. And that is atypical for him.
– His start was bad, he always lacked 10 to 20 centimeters to reach the ball. He wasn’t hitting with the middle of the racket, but with the frame. His movement was bad. He was slipping… Fell twice. As if he wasn’t prepared for the match. Years take their toll, he no longer has the same reaction as before. He’s slow. It’s simple. There’s no dilemma there and it will only get worse and worse. And he needs to understand that. He has some advisors, a coach… Let him talk to them to see what he’s going to do.
It seems that Novak is currently weaker than Sinner and Alcaraz, but still better than everyone else.
– Novak must not be satisfied with being fifth or sixth. Either be among the top three, or not play. If he continues like this, he will fall below tenth place. He has lost before. He could develop complexes and then it will be even worse. Tennis has become boring, I said… And he has adapted to all that. Before there were net duels, approaches to the net, good passing shots, now there are none.
Ivan Lendl the right choice for coach
After Wimbledon, it is clear that Novak needs a coach. Experiments with Andy Murray and Dušan Vemić did not yield results.
– Djokovic should get a coach who was number one as a player, or among the top ten! I will repeat, if necessary, for the 100th time, Ivan Lendl would be an ideal coach for him! He would certainly know how to notice what Novak lacks. He needs a coach with authority, that is 100 percent true. Vemić may be a good coach, but he has no authority over Novak. He is not the person to arrogantly tell him, this is not good. Only someone with a strong stance can do that. And Novak needs that now to extend his career.
The goal of 25 Grand Slam titles remained unattainable.
– Difficult. Given his form and recent results… I would like to, but… What he has achieved, that is the peak. Is there anyone better than him? Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer are looking up to him! After all, Novak is already the best of all time.
Novak now faces a break until the US Open.
– What should he do? First, recover from the injury. If he used to have two training sessions a day, now he needs four! First, to intensify training. Second, to work on things that are not good for him. Game consistency, net approaches, slice backhand and passing shots… And, above all, the serve! Look at the statistics, how many aces he had… A small number per match.
Definitely not retirement
What is encouraging is that Djokovic said he would not retire.
– Good! And he shouldn’t even think about it! It’s too early for him to retire. As long as he is among the top ten, he should play.
English media have recently spread information about a certain healer, Gary Lineham, who was a guest in Novak’s box during the match against Kecmanović.
– I think such things distract him. That’s not good for him. He should focus on the game, talk to his coach. Everything else, in my opinion, is not good for him – says Radmilo Armenulić.
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Source: Kurir Photo: Adam-Davy-PA-Images-Alamy-Profimedia