Novak Djokovic has seen how the world of tennis surrendered at his feet after his 22º Grand Slam. The Serb conquered the Open the Australia 2023 and he did it overcoming, once again, a great number of adversities, in addition to closing the circle after his deportation in 2022. His success with all the letters has been accompanied by the recognition of a large number of analysts and experts. One of them has been Jimmy Connorsand it is that the legendary American champion paid tribute to Novak in the latest edition of his podcast Advantage Connors, which he records with his son Brett. In fact, the recognition came in the most ‘Connorian’ way possible: he didn’t cut a hair.
“I need to say this: this guy is a fucking gamer, isn’t he? He is a guy who is not afraid when it comes to going out there, on the court, and playing tennis, playing his tennis. It doesn’t matter if he wins or if he loses. He is not afraid to go all out. He knows that he is the rival to beat for everyone, and now even more.”, begins by arguing a Connors who marveled at Novak’s performance in Australia. He was especially effusive when it came to recognizing Djokovic’s worth when deploying different styles and adapt to the rival’s performance to win, in addition to applauding the validity that the Serbian manages to maintain against much younger generations and, in theory, in better physical condition than him.
“He’s not afraid at all when it comes to facing all these young guys who have had big tournaments. He doesn’t care about that. He plays his tennis and he doesn’t have a problem when it comes to variations. He’s not afraid to play on the line baseline and attacking the ball early, he’s also not afraid to trade 20 shots to earn a point. He’s not afraid to find a way to win, and I personally like to see that.”clearly states a Connors who applauds the competitive fire and ambition of Djokovic, seeing himself reflected in that hunger that he showed so many times in his time as a professional tennis player.
GOAT? MUCH BEYOND THAT
Jimmy did not want to get wet when deciding on one of the three members of the Big Three. His response was argued and eloquent: why stay with one when you can enjoy what for many is the greatest rivalry in the history of sports? This is how clear the American made it: “Rivalries are great, it’s the reason why people decide to watch this sport, watch a match and the emotion that comes from it. As a tennis player you have to find a reason to fight more, push yourself more and come out on top. How do you find that? What do you lean on when you decide to go down to hell? Sometimes you have to find something that makes you come out of there with more motivation to beat your opponent.”
