"They're loving the chance of getting to play Novak early": Novak Djokovic needs to be careful early at US Open says Mats Wilander
ATP
Novak Djokovic has to be careful and wary of early threats when he plays the US Open admits Mats Wilander as he tackles the route towards his 25th Grand Slam title.
Djokovic's Olympic gold medal triumph was a double edged sword as he then decided to take time off instead of playing Canada or Cincinnati which makes him very much an intriguing proposition in New York with no warm-ups.
He has also undergone an injury scare just over the last 24 hours cancelling practice but Wilander lauded the legendary Serbian for how he went about Olympic glory.
"Obviously, it makes everyone that's involved in the sport extremely happy," Wilander said in an interview with Eurosport. "We can now clearly say, whether it's a woman or a man, that the person that has won 24 majors and the Olympic gold and Davis Cup and has won the most tournaments in terms of ATP 1000 - and he's got the best head to head against his rivalries, the big three - that he is easily the BOAT, the best player of all time.
"I was extremely excited. I was extremely surprised that he was able to do that with the pressure, compared to trying to win Wimbledon. This is his last Olympics and he manages to do it on maybe his least favorite surface in what many people would call his least favourite court, Philippe Chatrier.
"But he is not done, and I already said it at Wimbledon, that I think he's going to win one, two or even three more majors.
"And this will give him that energy to keep going and keep fighting because he loves the challenge that the younger players are posing to him, and he's starting to turn the fans around in a very, very interesting and healthy way where people, me included, want to see him pushed by these two young guys, [Jannik] Sinner and [Carlos] Alcaraz."
The Novak Djokovic scalp is still a big one says Wilander.
But the fact he hasn't played early is intriguing to Wilander who said that his scalp is still a big one for players even at 37.
"Novak isn't even playing a tournament on hard court before the US Open," Wilander added. "That hasn't happened in, I don't know how long, especially when it's his decision to not to.
"I actually suspect and expect him to play as well as he ever has because I think getting to the Wimbledon final is a bit of a confidence boost.
"Now, he knows that his knee is fine. So I think that you're going to see a Novak that's going to be extremely focused early in the tournament. And the one thing that really helps when you don't play a tournament on that same surface before a major is the focus of that player in the first few rounds. It is better than if they come in having won a tournament in, let's say, Cincinnati or the Canadian Open.
"So I think Novak, he knows that he is good enough, but he also knows that he has to be careful even though it's on his favorite surface.
"Literally everyone is a hard court specialist. So I think he can play himself into great shape heading into the second week. But he has to be careful. He really has to be careful. A lot of players, they're loving the chance of getting to play Novak Djokovic early in a Grand slam tournament, still at 37 years old."
"A lot of players are tired," he continued. "This year, of course, is very specific with the Olympics, but when we think about new names that could win it.
"How about Novak Djokovic winning the gold medal at the Olympics, and maybe for him that was a relief and also realizing that, 'hey, I can still beat these guys'.
"That was in two out of three sets. I think he's better in three out of five. So it's very open, which tells me that the men's game is most probably in one of the most healthy situations that it has been since Rafa Nadal. Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray started to challenge Roger Federer.
"Everybody knows they can win, all of them know that they can lose. And no one except Novak Djokovic really is going for any significant number in terms of winning a grand slam. So I'm expecting an unbelievable two weeks."
Samuel GillEditor-in-Chief
Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.
Based in Leicester, Samuel has a broad background in tennis media. In his current role, he works closely with editors and writers to ensure coverage meets clear journalistic standards, with particular attention to verification, consistency, and timely updates when new information becomes available.
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