Novak Djokovic He is racing against time in search of his 25th Grand Slam, which would make him the winningest player – man or woman – in that category, the most important in the world of racket tennis. The 38-year-old Serbian knows that he does not have many opportunities left to break the tie with Margaret Court and reach that unprecedented record.
Firstly because today there are two enormous tennis players who threaten that dream, Carlos Alcaraz y Jannik Sinnerthe new young dominators of the circuit. And, as much as he seems to defy the passing of the years, because his almost two decades in professionalism have already begun to take their toll on him. But Aile He wants to continue making history and that is why, facing 2026, he added a new piece to his team with the aim of strengthening his physical preparation and giving new “life” to his tanned body.
In the middle of preseason – which started in Qatar, before any other member of the top ten after dropping out of the ATP Finals in Turinand who is now still in Athens, the former number 1 began working with the doctor Mark Kovacsspecialist and world leader in sports science, exercise physiology, physical conditioning, biomechanics, injury prevention and recovery, and optimization of on-field performance.
Former tennis player – he was a university champion in USA and reached 622nd place in the world doubles ranking and 1,021st in singles. ATP-, the 45-year-old Australian graduated in Auburn University with a PhD in Human Performance (Exercise Physiology) and has extensive experience in high performance sports.
He worked with the United States Tennis Association (USTA) and with several players from that country, such as John Isner, Sloane Stephens, Madison Keys y Coco Gauff. He was director of the Department of Sports Science and Health of the Cleveland Cavaliers of the NBA and also trained several professional athletes in that league and the NFL and the MLB.
🚨Novak Djokovic has hired a new member to his team.
Dr. Mark Kovacs is working with Novak with a focus on physical conditioning, injury prevention, biomechanics, recovery, and on-court performance optimization.
Novak is rebuilding his body and training hard for the new season. pic.twitter.com/euYhXL02MT
— Danny (@DjokovicFan_) December 14, 2025
Co-founder of the International Tennis Performance Association (ITPA for its acronym in English), Kovacs now put all his knowledge and experience at the service of a Djokovic who, now a legend, is not satisfied and wants more.
The Serbian closed 2025 as number four in the world, after a season in which he won two titles (in the 250m Ginebra y Athens) to bring his personal account to 101, but in which he could not feed his harvest in Grand Slams, since he lost in the semis in the four events at that level. And as he has said more than once in recent years, at this stage of his career, his only goals are to win more “big” trophies and defend his country’s flag.
With the Serbian shirt he aims for the challenge of reaching the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Gamesin which, at 41 years old, he would seek to defend the gold he won last year in Paris.
On the ATP circuit, the closest challenge will be Australian Openthe first major of the new season, which will start on January 18 and will be, for many, their last great chance to achieve the coveted 25th title in this category.
The oceanic “big” is the most successful Grand Slam of Djokovic’s career and the one in which he feels best with his tennis. In that tournament, the Serbian lifted the trophy in ten editions; while he celebrated three times in Roland Garrosseven in Wimbledon and four in the US Opena tournament in which he won, until now, his last crown at this level, in 2023.
With the Melbourne event getting closer, with the dream of Los Angeles 2028 on a not so distant horizon and with Alcaraz and Sinner getting stronger, at the head of new generations that already have an advantage physically, Aile I had no time to waste. And he decided to add a new name to his team, in a bet that was reminiscent of the one he made in July 2010, when he hired the nutritionist Igor Cetojevicwho diagnosed him with lactose and gluten intolerance, motivated him to completely change his diet and marked a turning point in his career.
Before starting to work with Cetojevic, Djokovic’s then-unknown allergies conditioned his performance on the court: he often ran out of breath and without energy and was even seen vomiting several times in the middle of matches. His record reflected it: until the end of that year he had won only one Grand Slam, in Melbourne in 2008.
In 2011, he exploded: he won ten titles, including Australia, Wimbledon and the US Open, he reached world number 1 for the first time and began the path that led him to become one of the best tennis players in history, the best, if we talk about numbers and records.
Will the addition of Kovacs to your team have the same effect as the arrival of Cetojevic? The challenge this time is greater because the biological clock speeds it up. But if the Serbian demonstrated something time and time again, it is that, when he has a goal in mind, he almost always achieves it.
