“Surprised how quickly he went to that all-out aggressive play,” Andy Roddick struggles to understand Novak Djokovic’s tactics in the Wimbledon 2024 final
Novak Djokovic now has a 1-2 record against Alcaraz in Grand Slam meetings.
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Andy Roddick and Novak Djokovic (via Imago)
Former World No. 1 Andy Roddick admits he was surprised by Novak Djokovic‘s tactics in the Wimbledon final against Carlos Alcaraz. The Serbian lost a second consecutive Wimbledon final to the 21-year-old, this time in straight sets 6-2, 6-2, 7-6.
Roddick, who finished as runner-up three times at SW19, was speaking on his podcast ‘Served with Andy Roddick.’ The American claimed that Djokovic’s knee surgery could have been a decisive factor in the match.
Novak for his entire career has been the master of kind of extending points, playing within himself, forcing you to attack from tough positions, and today I felt like whether it was the serve and volley, whether it was going line very early, not sticking Carlos into that backhand to backhand rally, it seemed like Novak was in a hurry to get out of that.Andy Roddick said
Djokovic usually plays from the baseline, staying steady with his strokes and waiting for his opponents to make mistakes. He used this approach throughout the tournament. However, he tried a new strategy against Alcaraz, which did not work.
I don’t fully understand, maybe his read on the first couple of points getting bullied, obviously the knee issue, he must know something that we don’t. I was surprised how quickly he went to that all-out aggressive play. I didn’t mind the coming in, I didn’t mind the approaching line but kind of taking random shots line very, very early in rallies in a very aggressive nature, not wanting to switch the direction of a rally.Andy Roddick added
Djokovic’s attempts to break the rallies by coming to the net often failed. He won only 51% of points (27/53) at the net. This also hurt his first serve points, winning just 66% (47/71).
Novak Djokovic’s two big goals for the rest of 2024
After losing the Wimbledon final to Carlos Alcaraz for the second year in a row, Novak Djokovic shared his “two big goals for the rest of the year.” The 24-time Grand Slam champion is now looking ahead to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. The Serbian mentioned after the Wimbledon final that he has no plans to retire just yet.
Let's see how physically and mentally I'm going to feel. Hopefully I can find the right tennis because I'm going to need all I have and more to go to the final of the Olympic Games. The Olympic Games and US Open are the two big goals for the rest of the year for me really. I'm hoping I can be at my best on those two tournaments.Novak Djokovic said via Wimbledon press
He made a strong comeback from knee surgery to reach the final at SW19. However, he acknowledged that he hasn’t been at the same level as Alcaraz or World No. 1 Jannik Sinner this year.
Djokovic hopes to regain his form before the Paris 2024 Olympics and the hard-court swing in North America. After the challenge of making it to Wimbledon post-knee surgery, his next task is to transition from grass back to clay. The tennis event at the Olympics starts on July 27 at Roland-Garros, the French Open venue.
Several clay tournaments are happening before the Olympics. Rafael Nadal, who skipped Wimbledon to prepare for the Games, is playing in Bastad this week. Djokovic, however, has not entered any events and seems set to play next at the Olympics, representing Serbia.
In case you missed it!
- “Only 13? With those shots?” Chris Evert amazed of prodigy Carlos Alcaraz’s practice footage when he was just 13 years old
- “I would probably say…” Stefanos Tsitsipas picks his biggest rival on tour among Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner
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Fahad Hamid
(624 Articles Published)