Photo credit: Rob Stone/@RobStoneTennis
His mood was filthy and his form was lousy. Novak Djokovic had just been dumped out of the BNP Paribas Open in his opening match.
The great Serb was undone by a combination of Botic van de Zandschulp and his own failings as he was bundled out of the tournament 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 in a little over two, error-strewn hours. This was not how it was meant to be; this was not in his script.
Fair enough, Djokovic’s Australian Open did not go according to plan, either. But by the time he was forced to retire against Sascha Zverev in the semi-final (a torn hamstring had done for him), he knew that he was playing good tennis and he was competing as in days of yore. It was just that his 37-year-old body would not let him go any further. That was just bad luck; plain and simple.
After Melbourne, Djokovic extended his working partnership with Andy Murray. Their agreement would now last “indefinitely” or, in other words, until one of them wanted to do something else. But they were a team. This boded well.
In 2023, Djokovic was one set away from winning the Grand Slam. Back then, he was still the real Novak Djokovic, master of all he surveyed and had it not been for a pesky, confident, youngster by the name of Carlos Alcaraz who ousted him in five, harum-scarum sets at Wimbledon, he would have ruled the world.
But since then, it has all gone horribly wrong.
Last year, his only trophy came at the Paris Olympics. Grand slams came and went and he was never in the mix. Yes, he reached the Wimbledon final but, once there, he could not lay a glove on Alcaraz and was given a thorough schooling by the Spaniard.
All he could say afterwards was that “he was the better player from the beginning till the end.” Blimey, if Djokovic thought it was that bad, it must have been a pasting.
And once Djokovic had that Olympic gold medal around his neck a few weeks later – beating Alcaraz to get it – our hero struggled for motivation. That was hardly surprising as he had spent 20, long years chasing down that bit of bling in order to bring it home to Serbia with great pride. Everyone could forgive him for that.
But his partnership with Murray, announced at the end of that year, came as a bolt from the blue. Murray had shown no signs of doing anything other than enjoying his retirement (he called it a day at the Olympics last summer) and playing a lot of golf. And then Novak made him an offer he could not refuse.
Djokovic is not daft – no one wins 24 grand slams if they are not savvy – and he knew that if anyone knew how to beat him, it was Murray. Born a week apart, they have known each other and played against each other for a lifetime. And while Djokovic has the winning head-to-head record over the Scot (played 36, won 25), Murray beat him in two grand slam finals. And Djokovic in a major final is usually an untouchable beast (in the nicest, possible sense).
If anyone can find a way to motivate Djokovic, Murray can.
Throughout the Scot’s career, he has always defied any nay sayer. From the doctors who first diagnosed his bipartite patella when he was a teenager (they weren’t sure that he could ever play again with that condition) through to the surgeon who did his hip resurfacing operation in 2019 (she said that no one had ever tried to play elite, singles tennis after such a procedure so they were now in uncharted territory), he would not be stopped. You never tell Andy that he cannot do something. He will bust a gut to prove you wrong.
Perhaps, though, Andy’s motivational skills have met their match. After Saturday’s loss in the desert, Djokovic sounded truly beaten.
“I’m disappointed that I lost, but I guess if you put things in that larger perspective, of course I’ve had an incredible career,” he said. “Being consistent for so many years, obviously you have high expectations of yourself.
“Things are different obviously for me the last couple of years. I’ve been struggling to play on the desired level. Every now and then, I have couple good tournaments, but mostly it’s really a challenge. It’s a struggle for me.
“So it is what it is. I guess nothing can prepare you for that moment, in a sense. You have to experience it and try to deal with it in the best possible way.”
When Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal finally admitted defeat and retired, it was because their bodies had given up (Roger’s knee; Rafa’s hip). If they were fit, they could play; if they were fit, they had the same fire in their bellies. But it could not go one forever and, gradually, they faded into retirement.
All the while, Djokovic continued to win major titles. He was not like other men.
It stood to reason, then, that when the Serb’s time came, his fall would be like falling off a cliff. When his superhero powers began to fade, he would be merely mortal – and mortals don’t win titles like Djokovic in his pomp.
And yet…. Murray managed to eke another seven years out of his career after his right hip broke down in 2017. And he won another tournament title a mere nine months after his hip resurfacing operation. He, too, is not like other men.
Maybe, just maybe, Muray can eke one last grand slam title out of Djokovic so that the Serb can retire as the greatest player ever to pick up a racket and claim that 25th major trophy, the only goal yet to be reached on his career wish list.