Australian Open: Djokovic before a sporting test against Alexander Zverev
Novak Djokovic once again raises question marks in Melbourne about the seriousness of his injury. The quarterfinals against Alexander Zverev could show how fit Djoker really is.
by Jörg Allmeroth
last edit: Feb 15, 2021, 10:45 am
When Novak Djokovic stood on the Center Court of Dubai just under a year ago, just once again proclaimed tennis king of the desert, the world was somehow still in order. At the winner's interview after his 79th career success, Djokovic was asked, as always, about his goals for the season, it took a few moments before the world number one announced: "I want to remain unbeaten for the rest of the year." The crowd laughed, hooted, gave frenetic applause. And then Djokovic added: “That was fun. Oh, not really. It's not fun. "
In mid-February 2021 Djokovic is still number 1 in the world rankings, in terms of points he is the undisputed leader of the traveling circus. But apart from the old, existing pecking order, nothing is as it was in the cosmos of the 33-year-old Belgrade - the man who went to the spectacular quarter-final summit in the then deserted Rod Laver Arena on Tuesday afternoon at the Australian Open against Alexander Zverev Melbourne enters. Djokovic, who since his ascent to the elite heights of world tennis has always tried to catch up with the sympathy values of the alpha animals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, has gambled away a lot, even a lot of recognition and respect in the past few weeks.
Djokovic: trials and tribulations
In fact, he's actually the biggest loser in the weird, peculiar months of the global pandemic. Even with the ongoing Grand Slam events Down Under, the Serb is once again the focus of unflattering considerations - again it is about allegations of simulating injuries. And to take dubious time-outs in matches to irritate the opponent. After Djokovic looked very attacked in a five-set fight against the American Taylor Fritz and later indicated an abdominal muscle strain himself, there were no significant complaints in the last 16 win against Milos Raonic (Canada) on Sunday . For the audience it looks "strange", explained Matador Rafael Nadal.
Djokovic was in the global headlines again and again in the extraordinary 2020 Corona season, but the sport he represents as a leader did not do that particularly well. It all began with the twists and turns of the Adriatic tour, which Djokovic and his family empire organized in the spring - with good will, admittedly. But without discipline, order and a certain humility in times of crisis. In the end, even after nightly party excesses, a single pile of broken pieces remained - and, incidentally, a series of virus infections among professionals and their entourage. Djokovic and his wife were also affected.
"Work on my development"
While most of his comrades in general just worked towards lockdown in all solitude, Djokovic got constantly and polarizingly astray. Again and again he came out as a supporter of dubious esoteric ideas, he even took the view that one could purify poisoned water through the power of thought alone. As if that weren't enough, everything went wrong for the headstrong Capitano during the first major operation in the era of the pandemic. Right before the US Open, the 33-year-old started a kind of rebellion against his own players' union, ATP, and founded a new interest group. And promptly received harsh criticism: "Solidarity, cohesion" are now needed, Maestro Federer called out, "and not division."
And then, probably as a result of the tension and the huge pressure, the super-GAU for Djokovic happened - the moment when, after 26-0 victories in 2020, his dream of invincibility dissolved into chaos: in the round of 16 of the New York Grand Slams against the Spaniard Carreno Busta, Djokovic hits a linesman in the neck in an outburst when he fires the ball uncontrollably from the racket. He is disqualified, it is the high and low point of his collected escapades. He secretly leaves the scene of the shame, skips the press conference, and later submits an apology via social media. "Sad and empty," says Djokovic, "I now have to go into myself as a person and work on my development."
Djokovic: sporting test against Zverev
But to strike the right note, to find the right balance, is still difficult for him in the general state of emergency. It's no different in Australia either. After the problems in the Grand Slam countdown, the corona cases on the charter flights for the professionals and the tough quarantine for a larger contingent of players, the most successful player of the last decade of tennis directs a catalog of demands to the tournament bosses - this also includes the ludicrous request to move the affected players to private houses. Privilege for the already privileged tennis stars - there is an outcry across the fifth continent, in comment columns in the newspapers it is demanded that Djokovic be expelled immediately. It is reminded of the hardships the people in Melbourne had to put up with during the Corona crisis, including an iron lockdown over 111 days in late summer and autumn.
Against Zverev, who was also one of the invited and fellow celebrants on the Adria Tour, the controversial Djokovic is now facing his biggest sporting test in the 2021 tournament in the quarter-finals night show on Tuesday. "If this weren't a Grand Slam, I would have pulled myself out of the competition," the Belgrade rider claimed after his four-round win against Raonic, without revealing any details about his injury. Zverev, however, should better adjust to a fully capable Djokovic, to a man who in Melbourne has also been referred to as a “rubber man” because of his persistent flexibility and fascinating mobility.
Djokovic has already won eight titles in the Rod Laver Arena, no one was more successful here than him. With cup number nine, he wants to stalk Federer and Nadal in the eternal Grand Slam list of the best, the duo that serves as a yardstick and benchmark. "To have won the most Grand Slams is my biggest drive," says Djokovic.