Australian Open 2024: Jan 24 Results & Recap

They have given him good medical treatment, yes, it has given him a lot of power. He has done very well from then on. At the beginning of the second I saw that he was suffering with his arm, his speed was dropping. But then everything changed, I relaxed too much and had trouble closing the second set. From there, the game was no one’s. I was fortunate to get out of trouble with set points against in the third. Things change very quickly in this sport, happy to have won in three sets.

Before I sprained my ankle I had already asked the physio to see the blisters. Luckily I had a good fall and protected myself, it could have been very ugly at that moment.

My body is very good. It has been a great start to the tournament, although everything can change and I don’t want to get ahead of myself. Last year I learned my lesson, I got excited very early in some Grand Slams in which I started very well, reached the quarterfinals or semifinals and was injured in three of the four. I keep trying to get these young guys to squeeze for their money. I’m still here. Obviously Alcaraz and Sinner are playing at a different level than the rest of us right now. But when you enter the court and the ball rolls, you always have a chance. Particularly here, on the track that has given me the most in my career. Looking forward to the next battle.

I met Iva Jovic last year, she is very young and is already doing great things in the rankings and with results. Yesterday we met in the press area and I shared with her my observations of her game. That’s between us, she said it at a press conference and that’s fine, it’s up to her if she wants to share it. She is a great girl, with a good family. I connect emotionally with her because of her connection to Serbia. She has all the weapons to be a future number one, and that is what I wish for her.

To the Djokovic of the past I would say ‘calm down, idiot’. It’s true, I get too stressed on the track very often. Sometimes there is a lot of tension. I think patience is important. When we are younger, regardless of what we do in life, we want everything here, now, today. Having patience and trusting the process, surrounding yourself with the right people is also important because it is an individual sport. It is one of the keys in the career of someone young. Not just trust and follow everything they tell you, but build a personality to understand the people you want around you. We travel the world, we see our staff more than our family, so there has to be a good atmosphere, a good energy.