“I’m gonna beat them,” Patrick Mouratoglou reveals how Novak Djokovic was shamed for being too ‘cocky’ in pursuit to end Nadal-Federer domination
Patrick Mouratoglou reveals how Novak Djokovic's mentality has helped him dominate men's tennis.
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Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic
Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer were clearly in a league of their own back in the mid 2000s. The duo competed against each other in the finals of almost every Major in these years. Rest of the competitors on the tour believed that it was almost impossible to win a Grand Slam with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal around.
Reputed tennis coach, Patrick Mouratoglou had a rather interesting story to talk about Novak Djokovic’s resurgence on the ATP Tour. The French tennis coach revealed that back in the day, most of the higher ranked players believed they could not defeat Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer on the big stages. However, Novak Djokovic, who was aged just 19 years back then, had the confidence to publicly state that he would defeat the duo. Not only did the Serbian stand true to his word, but also he has dominated the men’s tour for the past decade.
“A lot of people think they cannot defeat Rafa or Novak at all. Some others think they cannot beat them in Grand Slam. So what is impossible to envision is impossible to do. And champions are not able to foresee any limits,” Patrick said.
“Most of the top 10 believed it was impossible to win a Slam,” Patrick Mouratoglou on Rafael Nadal-Roger Federer dominance
Patrick Mouratoglou revealed that Novak Djokovic was shamed for being too cocky in his pursuit to end the Fedal dominance. Novak Djokovic announced himself on the big stage in 2008, when he claimed his first ever Major title at the Australian Open. It took him three more years to claim his second Grand Slam title, however, there was no stopping him from there on.
Patrick Mouratoglou believed that the Serbian always had the confidence and the mental grit to be the best among the business. “A young guy, 19 years old, suddenly came out publicly, and said that I am going to beat them (Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. And this guy was Novak Djokovic. The tennis world said: ‘What a Shame! How can this guy be so cocky.’ It’s not cockiness, it’s confidence. And he happened to do it. Not because he said it, because he deeply believed it,” said Patrick.
Novak Djokovic turned into an absolute beast at the turn of the last decade. The Serb claimed three Grand Slam titles in 2011, which was just a sign of bigger things to follow. Currently, the 35-year-old sits on 21 Major titles, just one behind his biggest rival, Rafael Nadal who has 22 titles.
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Nirmit Mehta
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