ATP Cup: Djokovic and Troicki with the chance to make amends
Compared to the Davis Cup final tournament in Madrid, the Serbian team will make some changes at the ATP Cup. The rock in the surf, however, remains Novak Djokovic.
by tennisnet.com
last edit: Dec 09, 2019, 02:46 pm
The images from Madrid are still fresh in the memory of tennis fans: Novak Djokovic comforts an actually heartbroken Viktor Troicki, after he had given some chances in the decisive doubles against Russia to win. But that's just the way it is in tennis: The opportunity to rehabilitate is usually around the corner pretty soon. In the case of Troicki this would be the ATP Cup, where the Serbs next to Djokovic also count on Dusan Lajovic, Nikola Cacic and Nikola Milojevic.
Serbia will meet France, South Africa and Chile in Brisbane. Should Novak Djokovic arrive in good shape, the three individual points should probably be checked in safely for the current world ranking second. The question will be more, who denies the second single matches for the Serbs. After all, Filip Krajinovic, still the second man behind Djokovic in Madrid, is not in the team.
Kecmanovic benefits from Djokovic
The choice could fall on Lajovic, who not only won the ATP Tour 250 tournament in Umag last season, but also reached the final in Monte Carlo, where he lost to Fabio Fognini. "He did not surprise me with his level, because I know he can play really well," Djokovic told fellow countryman Lajovic on the ATP website. "To show it day after day in such a big tournament and win against a great player like Dominic Thiem is phenomenal."
Basically it was important that there were many successes of Serbian players on the tour. Eventually, these would ensure that the young would continue to strive for tennis. Miomir Kecmanovic, currently ranked 59th on the ATP charts and only 20 years old, has the greatest prospects for great success. Kecmanovic has learned a lot from the 16-time major winner. "Sometimes you just feel like you're not doing anything. You do not want to exercise or just stop. If Novak then says, 'You have to go ahead, bite yourself', advice like that really helped a lot. "In Brisbane, Novak Djokovic will probably keep this kind of motivation for Viktor Troicki.