NOVAK SPEAKS FROM THE HEART: I’m sick of the talk that I have to win a 25th title! I don’t have to! (VIDEO)

Novak Đoković lost to Jannik Sinner in straight sets (6:4, 6:4, 6:4) in the Wimbledon semifinals, and after the match he addressed the media at a press conference. The most emotional and candid moments came when Serbian journalists began asking questions.

Nole was especially emotional when one journalist asked him whether winning a 25th Grand Slam title was his ultimate goal…

“It’s not my ultimate goal. A lot of people put that burden on me, some people who are in my close circle in life, as well as the media… Of course I want 25, but it’s not the ultimate goal. It’s starting to annoy me a little, let’s put things into perspective. It’s as if I’m not enough for myself, as if 24 isn’t enough, it has to be 25. Four hundred weeks at No. 1 aren’t enough, it has to be 1,000. We have to be grateful,” Đoković said openly, before adding:

“I’m sick of talking about when No. 25 will come. Maybe it will never come. I’d like to dismiss that statement that it’s my ultimate goal, but it is my goal to prepare as well as possible and be at my best for the Grand Slams. I could have won five more Slams when I had matches in my hands, but I also could have lost some finals that I managed to turn around. I don’t know how long all of this will last. I would like people to respect my choice and not pressure me with questions about when I’ll retire and when No. 25 will come, but instead to respect my decisions.”

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Đoković concluded:

“It affects my motivation quite a bit. My original motivation is connected to the love and passion I have for this sport. After that comes my competitive motivation, which has to be there, and the commitment to weeks of training in which you sacrifice a lot of yourself. But I’m not sitting here with you complaining. It’s not like it used to be. It’s hard for me to accept that my level of play can drop so much. I know where the ball is going, but my body is slow. Of course that drives me crazy because I want to be the best. It is what it is. I move forward with optimism, to represent myself and my country as best I can,” concluded Novak Đoković, the greatest tennis player and athlete of all time.