On Sunday, Djokovic won his third title this season against Croatian Marin Cilic in Tel Aviv, Israel. In that one, he was forced to miss both the Australian Open and the US Open due to his stance on vaccination against covid. He was therefore happy to return to the ATP Tour with a victory.
The 35-year-old player did not lose a set at the tournament. “I think I played very good tennis. “I haven’t played a tournament for three months, so that was really extra motivation for me to do well, especially because people were so friendly and supportive all week,” he said after the tournament. His last appearance on the circuit was at Wimbledon, after which however, despite winning the title, he fell to seventh place in the rankings, as ranking points were not awarded at the grass Grand Slam.
The form of “Djoker” was also admired by the 35-year-old Mischa Zverev, brother of the younger and more famous Alexander, who thinks that the former world number one can play at the top level for at least three to four more years. “Age is only a number if you do everything right on the court and outside of it like Novak,” he said on Eurosport’s live broadcast on Instagram.
However, he also expressed some doubts. “But I don’t know if he will be world number one again. The big issue will be: Will he play the Australian Open?” he asks. If Australia doesn’t change its stance on covid vaccinations, it would be bad for him. “If no ranking points are awarded at Wimbledon, he’s potentially 4,000 points short,” said the German tennis player.
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