He wrote the history of tennis, changing from tournament to tournament, and all in the era of two more great champions - Novak Djokovic talked about his rivalry with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in the second part of the show (Un)Success of Champions.
"I am a man who certainly has many flaws and I have made many mistakes, but I have always tried to live from my heart, to be with good intentions. Just because someone is my biggest rival and I want to beat them does not mean that I wish them harm in life or that I hate them. On the court, as they say, we fight like knights one on one, so whoever wins, wins," said Djokovic in an interview with Slaven Bilić.
He added that there is still a lot that is not up for sharing, that he felt and experienced through these rivalries.
"That's really true, the two of them had already developed a rivalry before I came along because Nadal broke through a few years before me. They come from Switzerland, from Spain, so Western powers. Simply put, no matter how much we would like to see this world, not in tennis but in general, as democratic, as pacifist, unfortunately racism still exists and there are still boundaries that are set in that context. I don't mean racism towards me, but I look at society and politics in general and everything that happens in the world. There are these orientations and there are affiliations," said Novak Djokovic and continued:
"I didn't belong there. In terms of nationality and many other things, I was simply a kid who came and said - I'll be number one. They didn't like that at the time. They didn't like me at all that I was here and that I was challenging these two. I respect and appreciate these two, as I always have, I haven't said a bad word about them and I won't say it, but I'm going to be better than them, I know that and I have no problem saying it and I've said it. But you have to be politically correct in their atmospheres and then of course, first the media, then these people, then the sponsors, then that whole machinery... Now you're going up against Goliath and trying to please someone. I tried to connect not only with them, but with people, but I saw that it was a cruel competition, a cruel fight."
I had to accept that not everyone would love me.
He realized that in that sense he had to toughen up and go his own way. However, he confirmed that he tried to please people until he realized "what he was pretending to be."
"I try to dance to their music and I admit, it was like that... Then it hit me in the head and then I said that I simply have to accept that some part of the population, both tennis and sports, will simply not accept me, love me because of my attitudes, behavior and I don't know what else, but at least I'm myself and then I can sleep peacefully."
And on the topic of where he saw himself in that story and what his advantage was over them and vice versa, among other things, he said.
"When we compare Federer, Nadal and me - Federer is the most talented, the most beautiful to watch, he spent his energy the most efficiently, he moved so slowly, so elegantly, so efficiently, while Nadal is the other contrast, the other extreme. Physicality is maximum, and I'm somewhere in between, but more towards Nadal. So more skating, running, baseline... Each of us had some of our own characteristics and as time went on, our rivalries complemented each other and strengthened. We always say that through these rivalries, the three of us contributed to developing into the tennis players and people and competitors that we have become. I say without a doubt, the rivalry with those two had the most influence on my development, especially in the second part of my career."
It's a part of me. left with them
Did a part of him leave after Nadal and Federer retired, or does he see a part of them in Janik Siner and Carlos Alcaraz?
"No. That's not it. Siner and Alkaras are truly extraordinary, extraordinary tennis players, incredible. I'm sure we'll see them in the years to come as the leaders of the sport of tennis, but no, no. For me, Federer and Nadal are irreplaceable and a good part of me left with them..."
The legendary tennis player also answered the question of how he stayed focused enough to win the Grand Slam 24 times. He said, among other things, that a person should be lucky enough to be surrounded by the right people who will guide him, show him, and point him out, but also who will allow him to fall and learn.
"To have people who make your life better, but not easier. That's why I think that maybe the secret to success, not just mine, is that you find a formula that works for you. And in my case, due to a combination of circumstances, growing up, and the like, I was forced to adapt my entire life to tennis. And when I say entirely, I really mean entirely - 95 percent of the time, how do you spend it? How do you spend your time when you're in quarantine, in the preparation period? Are you doing things that fill your life, your psyche, and your emotions with good vibes or not? I think every athlete needs to ask themselves that. Focus is practiced. It's practiced just like a shot or a hit."
Can I play? No, now Stefan and I will.
He also says that when he won Roland Garros for the first time in 2016, he briefly lost motivation.
"Wimbledon came not long after. It's both a blessing and a curse of tennis that you always have a big new opportunity very quickly, but having something so big coming right around the corner is a curse because in a way you can't celebrate what you've done."
However, even though they suggested he skip Wimbledon, he didn't do it - he lost the match against Sam Querrey, experienced emptiness, new feelings happened to him, he achieved almost everything he could and, as he said, he had to go through a transition in order to come back again.
"Maybe that whole process lasted from the end of 2016 to mid-2018. I was in the Dominican Republic with my family, there was a tennis court, they started playing, after I don't know how many days of break I didn't want to go near the court. Then my wife was playing with her son and I asked - can I? She says - no, Stefan and I are playing, and you at the end. They finish and then I finally take the basket, barefoot, in a swimsuit and start serving, one, two, five, stay for two hours and slowly come back. And then in the end from that 20th or something place to first place by the end of the year. That was probably my greatest comeback ever. Every phase has its own why, you just have to give somehow, that's my lesson from life, a chance for life and God to arrange things for you that sometimes it's better to let go and then win," concluded the tennis great.
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