Coach Goran Ivanisevic said Novak Djokovic was «just mentally not ready to fight Rafael Nadal» at their 2022 French Open meeting. Last year, Djokovic reached the French Open quarterfinals before Nadal defeated the Serbian 6-2, 4-6, 6-2, 7-6 (4).
Heading into this year’s clay court season and the French Open, Djokovic is determined to be much better prepared and peak at Roland Garros. «To be honest, I still don’t know what happened there, I still find that match a bit strange.
Novak just wasn’t mentally prepared to fight Nadal, who was the better player and deserved to win. So this year the most important thing is to stay healthy and prepare very well physically. Of course our main focus is Roland Garros, you need to be ready to give it your all there.
He can do it. Nadal is the favorite on clay as long as he can walk, but if Novak is mentally prepared, he can beat anyone,» Ivanisevic said. tennis majors.
Ivanisevic on Djokovic’s biggest rivals on clay besides Nadal
Nadal has not played since the Australian Open and it is unclear when he will be able to return to action.
But even without Nadal, coach Ivanisevic warns that there will be other players who could pose a threat to Djokovic. «Carlos Alcaraz, above all. (Alexander) Zverev played a fantastic Roland-Garros last year until the injury.
(Stefanos) There is also Tsitsipas, a former finalist. There are a lot of guys who are hungry for success, who want it very much and think they can do it, only to the point where they see they can’t (laughs). It’s going to be an interesting season on clay, but for us the most important thing is to reach the top in Paris,» explained Ivanisevic.
Meanwhile, Djokovic has been denied participation in Indian Wells and is likely to miss out on Miami as well. If Djokovic also receives the red light in Miami, he will focus on the Monte Carlo Masters, which begins on April 9.
