Novak Djokovic thanks people of Israel for motivating him to play better amidst Palestine war controversy
Follow Us
Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic, who recently became the only player in 2022 to have won a title on three different surfaces after picking up his 69th career title at Tel Aviv, has thanked the people of Israel for their warm support which helped him produce strong tennis the past week.
Djokovic, who didn’t lose a set on his way to the ATP 250 title, said it provided him extra motivation after not competing since the last three months.
“I hadn’t played a tournament in three months, so it was really extra motivation for me to really do well, particularly because people have been so friendly and so supportive of me throughout the week. I’m taking some great confidence into next week as well,” the Serb told ATP.
Novak Djokovic, the charmer, plays wheelchair tennis
Djokovic took on a new challenge when he tried his hands to play a little bit of wheelchair tennis against local player Elay Chayot. The Serbian played a few rallies to gain firsthand experience of the challenges of the format since it was totally different from regular tennis.
Djokovic expressed his excitement on his social media account where he thanked Chayot for guiding him and teaching him some tricks of the game. He also posted a story on Instagram with the caption “Great to play with you Elay!“
This is not the first time Djokovic has tried his hands at the wheelchair tennis. He had played alongside Dylan Alcott during an exhibition match at the Australian Open in 2017. The 21-time Grand Slam singles champion had earlier expressed his wish to learn more about the format since he finds it super-hard and challenging each time he tries to play and addresses wheelchair players as the real heroes of the game.
Djokovic is also due to play his first match at the Astana Open in Kazakhstan against Chile’s Christian Garin on Tuesday. The ATP 500 Astana Open boasts of a host of star names such as Carlos Alcaraz, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev, among others, to which fans had recently remarked that the field looked more like one in a Masters 1000 event.
Stay Updated!
Ashish Maggo
(191 Articles Published)