Evert thinks Miami and Indian Wells saga will make Djokovic more determined on court return: "He is like the anti-hero sometimes"

Eurosport analyst Chris Evert believes that Novak Djokovic will emerge more determined after the whole Indian Wells and Miami Open participation saga.

Djokovic is unlikely to play at the Miami Open although no official decision has been made. He pulled out of the Indian Wells when his petition was rejected and Evert thinks that it will motivate him to do even better moving forward. She compared him to an anti-hero who wants to prove his point to everybody:

“Yeah, I think the more somebody tells Novak he can't do this, the more determined he is. When he has control of the situation, it gives him more fuel and it makes him more determined to succeed, and stick it in everybody's face at the same time, make his point. He is like the anti-hero sometimes, he seems to really rise to the occasion when he is challenged and when he's told 'no'.”

She further added:

“It is an open field if Novak is not playing in the tournament. If he is playing in the tournament, he is always going to be the favourite. So even though he is not playing a full schedule because he can't because of the vaccination, I think in everybody's minds it really doesn't matter. He is still the No. 1 in the world. Whether he plays a full schedule or a three-quarter schedule, he is still number one in everybody's minds.”