It was around this same age that Roger Federer began to slow down. On clay, with the longer rallies and higher-bouncing shots, any lingering shoulder issues would render him vulnerable to more disappointment.Īpproaching his 30th birthday, Djokovic is entering a new phase. Bypassing this month's event in Dubai (where he's a four-time champion), he'll return in Indian Wells.įor Djokovic to pick up the slack, being close to 100 percent healthy again is a prerequisite.
That's a troubling development, but Djokovic now has time to rest and get right. "The pain I had prevented me from playing the points as I wanted to," Djokovic said, per 's Kamakshi Tandon. Dropping the first set to 63rd-ranked Daniil Medvedev of Russia, he won the match when his opponent retired because of his own physical problems. The shoulder problem resurfaced last week in Davis Cup action when Djokovic called for the trainer. He dealt with injuries to his wrist, arm and shoulder, skipping Cincinnati and laboring through the U.S. That would explain why his play dipped, but there's probably more to the equation.
If that's his main priority, then he will do what is necessary to find the winning ways again."įollowing their split, Becker also became publicly critical of Djokovic's practice habits, which he believes weren't up to par during the second half of 2016. That's really the key, to face the situation and be honest with yourself. "I hope Novak goes back to the drawing board and remembers what made him good in the first place. "I didn't recognize him today, his mentality," Becker told the New York Times' Christopher Clarey.
It escaped him during the Australian Open to the disbelief of Becker. Before worrying about the switch to clay, he needs something positive to build on.įirst and foremost, he has to trigger his old fighting mentality. Taking either Indian Wells or Miami would end that drought and could do wonders for his sagging confidence.
#DEFCON 1 MENTALITY SERIES#
Both slower hard courts, they're the Masters Series events where Djokovic plays his best.ĭjokovic's last "big" tournament win came at the Rogers Cup last July. He's swept Indian Wells and Miami each of the last three years, winning them a combined 11 times during his career. Those first two stops are ideal places for him to earn back momentum. Already lagging behind Murray in the rankings, he could slip further without better and more consistent results than he's recently mustered. The next round of tournaments are therefore vital if he wants to pull himself from this mire.ĭefending titles in Indian Wells, Miami and Madrid, Djokovic has a lot of points to lose. We're not at DEFCON 1 just yet, but a failure to improve his performance these next few months will put Djokovic in a larger state of crisis entering the French Open.
And then he fell flat on his face in Melbourne. When Djokovic began this season by defeating Andy Murray in the Doha final, it appeared as if he turned the corner. This court has been so nice to me. Of course it's disappointing but I have to accept it." "I'm not used to losing in the Australian Open second round," a morose Djokovic told CNN's Ravi Ubha. At the Australian Open, the six-time champion couldn't make it beyond his second match, upset by (then) 117th-ranked Denis Istomin-his first loss to someone outside the top 100 in nearly nine years. Lost is his air of invincibility.Ī streak of reaching 25 consecutive major quarterfinals ended in the third round at Wimbledon, followed by a first-round loss at the Olympics and an unraveling in the U.S. Gone is coach Boris Becker, with whom he won half of his 12 Grand Slams.
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