Goran Ivanisevic explains why he chose ‘a fresh challenge’ after parting ways with Novak Djokovic early this year

Goran Ivanisevic explains why he accepted to coach Elena Rybakina after splitting with Novak Djokovic earlier this year.


Goran Ivanisevic explains why he chose ‘a fresh challenge’ after parting ways with Novak Djokovic early this year

Novak Djokovic and Goran Ivanisevic (via Reuters)

On Friday (November 1), Elena Rybakina announced that she had found her new coach in Goran Ivanisevic. The legendary coach had previously worked with the likes of Marin Cilic and Milos Raonic before partnering with Novak Djokovic for over five years.

The Croatian coach has finally opened up about why he has decided to coach his first WTA player. Ivanisevic and Djokovic’s partnership is still regarded as one of the most fruitful collaborations in recent years.

YouTube video

Ivanisevic helped the 37-year-old win 12 Grand Slams and was nominated ATP Coach of the Year in 2023. However, the duo parted ways after Djokovic lost in the semifinals of the Australian Open and suffered an early exit at the Indian Wells Masters.

FS Video

The 53-year-old was recently appointed as Rybakina’s coach for next season and now has the responsibility of helping the Kazakhstan star win more Grand Slams. In an interview, he revealed that while it was hard to coach any player after splitting with Djokovic, he accepted to be Rybakina’s new coach as he needed a new challenge.

After Novak, it’s really hard to coach anyone, so I needed something completely different. When you’re the coach of the greatest player of all time, you just need something new. So the choice was some young player or something completely different, and this ’completely different’ was the WTA Tour.

Goran Ivanisevic said via Tennis Majors

Meanwhile, Rybakina has been struggling with her game rhythm after a bright start to the season. She is currently competing at the WTA Finals in Riyadh, where she has yet to win a match. Ivanisevic will have a lot of work to do ahead of next season.

Goran Ivanisevic believes Elena Rybakina will win more Grand Slams under his tutelage

Elena Rybakina was the favorite to win Wimbledon after other Top WTA players failed to reach the quarterfinals. But a shocking semifinal loss against eventual champion Barbora Krejcikova saw her fail to win her second career Grand Slam.

Elena Rybakina and Goran Ivanisevic (via US Open/ATP Tour)
Elena Rybakina and Goran Ivanisevic (via US Open/ATP Tour)

The Kazakhstan star didn’t reach any major final this season. Her new coach Goran Ivanisevic believes that the 2022 Wimbledon champion has what it takes to win more Grand Slams.

Game-wise, she has got a big serve, tall, strong hitter who plays aggressively, she won Wimbledon just like me. I feel I can teach her something. I mean, she is already No 5 in the world, but I think she can win more Slams, that’s for sure.

Goran Ivanisevic said

Ivanisevic became famous after leading Marin Cilic to his only Major title at the 2014 US Open, at a time when the Big 3 were at their peak. In 2016, he parted ways with Cilic and partnered with Djokovic two years later.