FLUSHING MEADOWS, N.Y. — In his rise to the top of the sport, Serb No. 1 Novak Djokovic has developed into one of the most thoughtful, reflective players in the game. Moments after his straight-sets win over No. 22 seed Alexandr Dolgopolov in Louis Armstrong Stadium on Monday, in which he survived the longest tiebreaker of his career (16-14 in the first set), the 24-year-old shared his thoughts with reporters. Some highlights.
ON HIS MENTAL GAME: I think mental strength you get over the years playing on the tour, getting experience, and using that experience in a right way. Physically out there, there is so many fit players. The game has changed tremendously. Top hundred players, physically there is not much difference between No. 78 in the world and Nos. 2, 3, 1, 5. Everybody’s working hours and hours on the court, off the court. It’s much more dedication to the sport than it used to be. But it’s a mental ability to handle the pressure, to play well at the right moments, and that’s why I think there is a certain difference with top-10 players.
ON RAFA’S ASSERTION THAT, IF YOU KEEP GRINDING, YOU CAN WEAR FEDERER DOWN, BUT THERE’S NO BACKUP PLAN AGAINST DJOKOVIC: First of all, I’m flattered to hear. Obviously, he’s a great champion, somebody that’s still on the top of the men’s game and I think he still has a lot of Grand Slams to win. He’s a great player and a great person off the court. We played so many matches between each other, us three, four — Murray, as well — mostly on the major events. It is a rivalry, if you want to call it, that is bringing a lot of excitement to the sport. I think whoever you play, your game plan is changing. You cannot always have the same game plan for Roger, for Rafa, for Andy, again depending on the surface. So you adjust to it with your coaches obviously before the match.
ON WHETHER HE’S BEGINNING TO FEEL THE PSYCHOLOGICAL ADVANTAGES THAT COME WITH BEING NO. 1: There are expectations from the top players to get far in any event, especially Grand Slams. And I’ve been carrying this burden for a while because I was top three in the last four years and I know how it feels to get on the center court in any Grand Slam. I know how it is to play the top guys in the big tournaments. I’ve got this necessary experience in order to know how to start a match and play well. But with this experience and with the success that you have over the years, you obviously have a certain psychological advantage over your opponents in the opening rounds especially. After, it gets tougher because you’re playing top guys, and that’s where just a couple points decide the winner.
ON THE IMPACT HIS PARENTS HAVE HAD ON HIS LIFE: Everything I have done or my parents or any members of my family have done for me, I’m very, very grateful for that. It’s been tough times, coming from a country that has had so much trouble. If I didn’t have their support, I don’t think I would manage to get here. But that’s why they’re my parents. That’s why they’re my family. They’re there to support. Their support is always welcome, is always needed. Now I have two younger brothers that I hope that they will come one day to this seat.
ON THE MOST IMPORTANT PIECE OF ADVICE HE RECEIVED FROM HIS PARENTS: Never give up. Just always try to look on a positive side with anything that happens because there is many obstacles on the way. But you always need to stay focused.
ON HAVING TO FACE HIS COUNTRYMAN JANKO TIPSAREVIC IN THE QUARTERS: It’s strange feeling. We are professionals. Certainly, we both want to win the match when we play against each other. So you kind of forget about friendship. You put that aside. We never played Grand Slam, though. We never played best-of-five against each other, so it’s going to be a first-time experience for both of us. I think it’s his first quarterfinals ever in Grand Slam. He’s playing the best tennis of his life. He’s very confident. But there is certainly this mentally strange feeling when you’re playing somebody that is one of your best friends in the private life, as well. So you got to handle that, as well.
ON ANA IVANOVIC’S STATEMENT THAT SERBIANS HAVE A COMBUSTIBLE CHARACTER THAT DRIVES THEM: I agree. I agree. There is something in the mentality that obviously helps us to be here, helped us to be successful in what we do. I think that the past and the life story that we have behind us, which is very similar, because we have all experienced the war, we have all experienced the tough times back home, struggles to have the right conditions to become a professional player. But in the end, those things, when you turn around, make you appreciate life much more. So I think that’s an advantage of the mentality.
