“It was an emotionally very demanding period for me in the last 5-6 months,” a jaded Novak Djokovic explains his depletion after loss at US Open 2021
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Novak Djokovic
World No.1 Novak Djokovic was just one final step away from creating history on the final day of the 2021 US Open. The top seed stood on the cusp of becoming only the second man in the Open Era, after Rod Laver to win the Calendar Slam.
That said, Djokovic ran into a determined and irresistible force in the form of World No.2 Daniil Medvedev. The second seed produced arguably the best performance of his career, en-route to winning his maiden Grand Slam in New York.
Speaking at the post-match media conference, the 20-time was asked to reflect on a tough loss. Acknowledging the relentless assault of his opponent, Djokovic said, “I mean, he was hitting his spots very well. He came out very determined on the court. You could feel that he was just at highest of his abilities in every shot. He had a lot of clarity what he needs to do tactically. He has executed it perfectly.”
Upon asked to comment on whether the long and demanding season was the reason behind causing emotional and physical depletion, Djokovic explained, “Could be. Could be. I had more hours on the court spent from Daniil, that’s for sure.”
“But was also emotionally very demanding period for me in the last five, six months. Slams and Olympics and playing at home in Belgrade. Everything was coming together for me here and kind of accumulating all the emotions that I’ve been through,” explained the three-time US Open winner.
Djokovic pleased with Slam results in 2021
A gutted Djokovic also mentioned that although he was disappointed to falter at the final hurdle, he was pretty pleased with his stellar 2021, especially at the Grand Slams.
“Unfortunately I didn’t make it in the final step. But when you draw a line, you have to be very satisfied with the year. Three wins, three Slams and a final. For the last couple of years I’ve been very transparent and vocal about my goals, to play my best tennis at slams. I’m managing to do that,” the 34-year-old signed off.
While the 20-time Grand Slam champion still has a handy lead over World No.2 Medvedev in the ATP rankings, it will be interesting to see how the remaining months of the years unfolds.
At the moment, it is still unclear as to where Djokovic will show up for his next tournament. However, he has already qualified for the year-end finals in Turin.
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Vivek Krishnan
(767 Articles Published)