Novak Djokovic spoke about his relationship with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal: “We were never friends, you can’t be between rivals”

He does not usually give interviews frequently and his figure is a magnet for the media. That is why, when he agrees to speak, each of his words resonates with force. Novak Djokovic talked about friendship with Roger Federer and with Rafael Nadal, his Big Three contemporariesand left several shocking phrases about it in an interview with the Italian media Corriere della Sera. He also, of course, referred to the accusations that were made to him due to his controversial positions regarding the Covid vaccine, which earned him being prevented from entering the United States and from playing some of the most important tournaments on the circuit.

The world of tennis is known to be somewhat complex. Egos and competition often get mixed up and there seems to be the question of how difficult it is to build relationships between players. For example, regarding his relationship with Federer, the Serbian tennis player did not mince words when describing it: “We were never friends, between rivals you can’t; but we have never been enemies. I have always had respect for Federer, he was one of the greatest of all time. He had an extraordinary impact, but I’ve never been close to him,” Djokovic surprised.

His relationship with Nadal also took up part of the interview with the Italian media, and Nole’s response was in the same vein as when referring to the Swiss. “[Nadal] He’s only a year older than me, we’re both Geminis, at first we even went to dinner together. But even with him friendship is impossible. I have always respected and admired him greatly. Thanks to him and Federer I grew up and became who I am. This will unite us forever; therefore, I feel gratitude towards them. Nadal is part of my life, in the last fifteen years I have seen him more than my mother”.

Djokovic was always under the watchful eye of the sports world, but not only because of his immense talent for playing tennis, but also because some of his determinations often generate controversy. What happened with the Covid vaccines marked part of his career: “I suffered everything on my skin. Many people have appreciated that I have remained consistent. 95 percent of what has been written and said on television about me in the last three years is completely false.”.

And he continued: “They put the anti-vaccination label on me, a completely false thing, which still gives me stomach aches. I am pro choice: I stand for freedom of choice. It is a fundamental human right to be free to decide what things to inject into the body and what not”.

Everything that was experienced after confinement was so intense that when activity returned and some rules had to be respected, Nole’s position of not wanting to apply a vaccine generated too much commotion, to the point that at the Australian Open he starred in scenes of film, since it was retained because those who did not have the corresponding doses were not allowed to enter the country. The Serb explained what the place where he was delayed was like: “A prison. I couldn’t open the window. I was there for less than a week, but I found young people, war refugees, who had been there for a long time. My case has served to clarify them, almost all of them have been released and that comforts me. A young Syrian had been there for nine years. Now he is in the United States, when he returns this summer I want to meet him again and invite him to see me at the US Open. I also feel connected to him.”

Djokovic talked about many topics: childhood, his relationship with his parents, what things marked him as a child and also the value of the tennis player Jelena Genic, who discovered it: “My parents ran a pizzeria, it was called Red Bull. Directly opposite they built the tennis courts. I was six years old. I don’t know if it was written in destiny that I had to become a champion, I told him that I don’t believe in coincidences, nothing happens by chance and everything has a reason; but I believe in luck. And it was lucky that Jelena turned up. There was no place for me on those courts and from behind the fence I watched the other children play. Then I turned on the television looking for a tennis match, and there was the Wimbledon final: Sampras beat Courier. The next morning Jelena came up to me and asked: ‘Good morning little one, do you know what tennis is?’ I replied: ‘Yes, I watched the Wimbledon final yesterday!’ And she said to me: ‘Do you want to try it?’”.

And continued: “Jelena saw something inside of me. I learned everything from her. If I’m such a perfectionist, it’s because she was.. She had discovered Monica Seles and it got me thinking like this: ‘Would you like a Coke? Monica Seles doesn’t drink Coca-Cola. Do you want a hamburger? Mónica Seles doesn’t eat fast-food… ‘She also made me grow as a man, she prepared me for life. My holistic approach, attention to what I eat, how I sleep, how I recover, how I host my thoughts, I found it in her. She took me to her house and made me listen to classical music… ”

Genic’s watchful gaze marked him forever, because she introduced him to universes that were unthinkable for a child his age: “He made me listen to Mozart, Bach, Vivaldi. He read me Pushkin’s poems. And he showed me the videos of the champions: Agassi’s backhand, Sampras’ serve, Rafter and Edberg’s volley, Becker’s forehand and jumps, those jumps that I have never learned to do ”.

And when it came to talking about the tennis player who had marked him the most in his growth, Djokovic did not hesitate to say: “Guga Kuerten, the Brazilian. The most charismatic, the most loved. So when I finally won Roland Garros in 2016, I asked his permission to celebrate it his way: draw a gigantic heart on Parisian clay.”.

THE NATION