"Serbia Open is what he needed" - Roddick on Djokovic

Novak Djokovic might not have won the Serbian Open, but according to Andy Roddick, the world number one would have gotten what he wanted from the tournament.

After losing early on in Monte Carlo earlier this month, the Serb arrived in Belgrade looking for some form in the clay-court season. He didn’t have it all his own way and lost the first set in each of his first three matches, but recovered to beat Laslo Djere, Miomir Kecmanovic and Karen Khachanov, respectively.

Roddick was asked by a fan what he thought of Djokovic and his week in the Serbian capital:

“Was just the kind of week Novak needed. Had some seriously physical matches and had the reps for the mental stress points. He has some time to recover/practice before Rome. Obviously we all want to win all the time, but I think he got everything he wanted/needed out of the week.”

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Djokovic, meanwhile, clearly ran out of energy in the final set and revealed he was dealing with an illness, although was quick to point out it was not COVID.

“It’s not COVID, it’s something else, but I wouldn’t want to go into details. I don’t think it’s necessary. It’s just something that affects my body and my metabolism for a few weeks. we didn’t have much time to get ready for Monaco.”