Novak Djokovic ‘the greatest in everything’ claims his coach
Novak Djokovic has been hailed by his coach Goran Ivanisevic, as the Croatian revealed how many more major titles he thinks his player will win.
Djokovic is into the third round of Wimbledon for the 17th time in his career, following his two opening round straight set victories over Pedro Cachin and Jordan Thompson.
His coach of four years, Ivanisevic, has spoken to Express Sport about the 23-time Grand Slam champion and whether he feels his player is given enough respect, “Sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t. People they feel like they can relate with Rafa [Nadal] and Roger [Federer] because they came [into tennis] first.”
Ivanisevic continued, “But he does get great support. He is one of the best athletes, and I’m not just talking about tennis, but one of the best athletes in the world. He’s still going and what he did for tennis and for sport is amazing. I think people appreciate it, but I think they will appreciate more when he stops playing tennis.”
During their working relationship, Djokovic has gone onto win eight more Grand Slam titles and Ivanisevic has claimed the Serb is the ‘greatest in everything’ when comparing him to rivals Nadal and Federer.
“For me Novak is the greatest for me in everything, by results,” claimed the 2001 Wimbledon champion. “Roger maybe played the most attractive tennis. But they all helped each other to become better players. First Roger, then Rafa and Novak came, the rivalry between these three guys was amazing. They made tennis a better sport and they all love tennis. But you have to choose somebody, some people prefer Roger or Nadal… for me, it’s Novak.”
Ivanisevic was also asked about Djokovic’s future and how much further he thought the 36-year-old could extend his lead at the top of the men’s Grand Slam charts.
“The way he has taken care of his body, he can do it,” said the former No.2. “I don’t know if he is going to have the motivation [to carry on until 40], it’s one way to go. He can play another two or three years at a high level.”
He added, “Maybe he wins 26 or 27 [Grand Slams]. Who knows? He can win another two this year and that would be unbelievable to do the Golden Slam. I don’t have a magic ball, but he’s healthy, he’s ready, he’s playing incredible tennis and he’s motivated for every Grand Slam. He has already achieved unbelievable things, but I still think he has a few Grand Slams in him left.”
Novak Djokovic has claimed 7 of the last 12 Wimbledon titles ?? pic.twitter.com/APgUDb8GKr
— Eurosport (@eurosport) July 1, 2023
Djokovic will continue his bid for more success later today, when he plays former rival and three-time major winner Stan Wawrinka in a blockbuster third round match on Centre Court.
Novak Djokovic vs Roger Federer vs Rafael Nadal
The ‘big three’ have dominated men’s tennis in the 21st century, winning 65 of the last 79 major singles tournaments.
However, the age old debate is always about who is really the greatest of all time, so we at Tennishead wanted to delve into the numbers:
Novak Djokovic
Career-high: No.1 (389 weeks)
ATP titles: 94
Grand Slam titles: 23
ATP Masters 1000 titles: 38
Olympic medals: 1 (Singles Bronze – 2008)
ATP Finals titles: 6 (2008, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 & 2022)
Davis Cup titles: 1 (2010)
Roger Federer
Career-high: No.1 (310 weeks)
ATP titles: 103
Grand Slam titles: 20
ATP Masters 1000 titles: 28
Olympic medals: 2 (Doubles Gold – 2008, Singles Silver – 2012)
ATP Finals titles: 6 (2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2010 & 2011)
Davis Cup titles: 1 (2014)
Rafael Nadal
Career-high: No.1 (209 weeks)
ATP titles: 92
Grand Slam titles: 22
ATP Masters 1000 titles: 36
Olympic medals: 2 (Singles Gold – 2008, Doubles Gold – 2016)
ATP Finals titles: 0 (Best result: Final – 2010 & 2013)
Davis Cup titles: 5 (2004, 2008, 2009, 2011 & 2019)
Head-to-head
Novak Djokovic vs Roger Federer: 27-23
Novak Djokovic vs Rafael Nadal: 30-29
Roger Federer vs Rafael Nadal: 16-24
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