Contract completed for Novak Djokovic. Even if he still dropped a set against Jaime Faria (6-1, [4]6-7, 6-3, 6-2), the Serb is qualified for the third round of theAustralian Open. For his 430th Grand Slam match, he also surpassed the record of Roger Federer of matches contested in the premier category of Tennis. At 37 years old, Djokovic took advantage of the post-match to proclaim that he did not lack motivation for the Grand Slam tournaments and gave his opinion on the benefits he derived from his collaboration with Andy Murray.
Video – Novak Djokovic: “Andy Murray impresses me!”
Find the men’s draw for the Australian Open here
Find the women’s draw for the Australian Open here
“I put all my heart on the court”
During his on-court interview, Nole explained the special connection he has with the Grand Slams: “I love competition, I always try to give the best of myself. I have been competing in Grand Slams at the highest level for 20 years. Whether I win or lose, I put my whole heart on the court. The Grand Slams are the pillars of our sport, they are the tournaments that motivate young people to follow tennis. When I was a kid, I watched the Wimbledon finals when I was 4 or 5 years old. These tournaments, they’ve existed for over 130 years so it’s an honor to break another record.“
“I would have preferred not to lose another set“
For his second round, Djokovic spent three hours on the court. Enough to gauge yourself before the level rises another notch against Tomas Machac : “I’m very happy with this victory, I really liked the way I started the match and the way I finished it. I think I managed to concentrate as much as possible in the important moments and improve my game, especially in the fourth set. It was another big test for me. Obviously, I would have preferred not to lose another set, but that’s a credit to my opponent. I think he has a lot of potential, he played a great match and put me under pressure at different moments of the match. Jaime Faria is a big boy, his future will be bright. But I really enjoyed my mentality today.“The Serb was also amused by Daniil Medvedev’s statements:”Here, Medvedev said that if young people continue to play so well, they will have everything, girls, money, casinos… I loved this speech.“
“I’m a fan of Joao Fonseca’s game”
Djokovic also gave his opinion on the phenomenon Joao Fonsecavictorious overAndrey Rublev this Tuesday. “I congratulated him not only for the win last night that I saw, for the last set that I saw, but also for everything he has done over the last six to twelve months. I’ve followed his rise and I love the way he plays the important points. He is courageous, he hits very cleanly, he is a complete player. Brazil is a huge country. It is very important for our sport that a very good player comes from Brazil. I don’t think there has been a player of this caliber since Guga Kuerten. It’s impressive that such a young player is able to perform so well on a big stage. I’m a fan of his game. I watched him last year. I think in one of my interviews for ATP I said that I saw a little bit of my game in his, especially when I was his age, when you’re a little careless in your shots, just showing what you are capable of.“
“With Andy Murray, we understand each other very well”
For his second match with Andy Murray in his box, the Serbian said he was satisfied with having recruited the former world number 1 during the off-season. “It’s amazing how hard Andy works, I love his dedication. He spent many hours watching videos of my opponents, analyzing their play and watching my last matches to draw conclusions about my tennis. He pushes me to look at specific moments and we discuss them, to talk about tactics in training. The truth is, I really enjoy analyzing things from videos and that’s something he’s always done too. We understand each other very well.“
