Novak Djokovic is one of the most accomplished players in not just tennis history, but all of sports history. The record holder for weeks at No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings (428) has rewritten the record books countless times and picked up plenty of lessons about life and tennis along the way.
Ahead of the Vanda Pharmaceuticals Hellenic Championship, ATPTour.com caught up with Djokovic to learn more about his mindset, the best match he ever played, what it feels like to be at the top of the sport and plenty more.
What is a quote you live by?
One of my favorites is, ‘There is no elevator to success, you have to take the stairs’.
What is the best gift you’ve ever received?
It would be a painting of me and my family members, hand painted.
What is one piece of advice you would give to all the kids about chasing their dreams?
First of all, it’s important to believe in your dreams, to not let anybody take away your dreams and your hopes. I think children are so good at imagination and [creativity] and just visualising themselves — whether it’s sports or any other area of life — to be accomplished or to be someone or to do something.
So we just have to allow them to fly with their wings and not really cut them. Just allow them to be who they are, because imagination is incredible with children
What is the greatest lesson you have learned from being a father?
The greatest lesson of being a father is being present and not multi-tasking while you are with children, because they demand your full attention on whatever you are doing, whether you are playing with them or doing something else. You always have to be in that moment.
I think that’s what kids teach us the most, really : to be forgiving, to move on and to be present.
What is your favourite meal?
I think it varies. I have a sweet tooth, so I would just pick an acai bowl.
What is the best match you have ever played?
The best match I was ever part of would be the final of the Australian Open in 2012 against Nadal. That is the longest Grand Slam final ever.
And against Roger in 2019, the final of Wimbledon. Those were the best matches I was ever part of. But the best match I ever played would be probably the final of the Australian Open against Nadal in 2019. I beat him in the final in straight sets and the level of tennis was really high.
You’ve spent more weeks at No. 1 than anyone else. How does it feel when you are at the top?
It feels great, but it also feels a bit lonely and you feel like you are a hunted one, so it changes the perception and the approach. Obviously it’s the ultimate achievement. Being No. 1 in any sport, in any profession, is the ultimate achievement. It’s something that I dreamed of when I was a kid: winning Wimbledon and being No. 1 in the world.
So when you achieve that, you understand then that there is a different dimension and approach of staying there. You all of a sudden have to defend the position rather than chasing it. It’s a great feeling obviously. But at the same time, you want to stay there, so you feel a little bit at times defensive, because you want to hold on to it.
It’s really about the mentality of how you approach [it]. I think it’s important to just always feel like you have to create, keep going and keep winning and you are part of that same group of the people that are chasing something: a title or a position. Because once you are thinking about, ‘Oh, I’m the No. 1, everybody wants to take this position away from me’, you create this unnecessary stress and pressure on yourself.
What has been the biggest key to your success?
Just dedication. Passion and dedication. Passion, love for the sport that causes you to be so devoted and dedicated to what you’re doing.
Who is the most underrated player you have ever faced?
[Stan] Wawrinka, I think he’s very underappreciated and underrated considering he is a three-time Grand Slam champion. I think people very often forget about him and what he has achieved. He has achieved more than 90-plus per cent of the players ever in the history of the game, so I’d probably pick him.
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If you could coach younger Novak, what tip would you tell your younger self about your game?
I would tell him to play the long game, be patient and trust the process. And try to have fun and enjoy that process as well.
Balance the professional and private life. Yes: Be dedicated, be devoted, work hard, that’s a must. But don’t lose yourself in the process. Don’t waste the young years, meaning you should live your life as well because you can’t turn back the time.
If you could take any stroke from any player, which would it be?
It would be a serve from one of the serve bots, whether it’s Karlovic or Isner, Opelka. I’m fine with anybody who is 6’10” or more.
If you could play any match in history that wasn’t your own, which would you pick?
It would probably be one of the the epic Borg-McEnroe matches that I would love to witness in the stands. Or, I would love to have had an opportunity to play with a wooden racquet and compete, see the difference. I probably would struggle a lot to hit heavy topspin with that.
But I love the history of our game, so it’s amazing to see how the game has evolved in terms of technology and everything in the past 50 years. So I would have loved to have witnessed that era.
You had long rivalries with Federer and Nadal and are building new ones with Alcaraz and Sinner? How would you compare your rivalries with them?
Very different, because I spent most of my career with my two greatest rivals: Nadal and Federer. Of course Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner are also my rivals at the moment, but they’re so young. I have 15 years of difference on the Tour to them, so our rivalries are a few years old, and I have 20 years of rivalry with the other guys. So it’s not really comparable.
But of course, it’s great that there is a new big rivalry in our sport between Sinner and Alcaraz. They’ve been playing some incredible matches in the past 18 months and hopefully they can keep going, because that’s what our sport needs.
What is one word you would use to describe Novak the tennis player?
I’ll use Nick Kyrgios’ description of me: meticulous.
If you could change one result in your career, which would it be?
None. None, because everything happens for a reason.
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