Novak Djokovic: “I can’t win with this game”
Novak Djokovic finds himself in a very tricky situation as he struggles with body and game just a few weeks before Roland-Garros.
Tennis – ATP Masters 1000 – Monte Carlo Masters – Monte-Carlo Country Club, Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, France – April 11, 2023 Serbia’s Novak Djokovic in action during his second round match (AI/Reuters/Panoramic)
Is it too soon to ring the alarm? Even Novak Djokovic might be wondering about it. The world No 1 didn’t find the reassurance he might have already needed after his early loss in Monte-Carlo, this week in Banja Luka. Two matches won in two tournaments for his comeback on clay: it’s already not ideal at all. But when you add a right elbow injury, it starts to become very worrying, even more because it’s been years since that elbow acted up.
“I had my chances, but I didn’t take them. I played quite passively, with many mistakes and that resulted in the defeat”, said a logically disappointed Novak Djokovic on Friday. And it’s not as if he had been at his best through the two matches he won in those two weeks, so no real reason for optimism there either. Djokovic being rusty for clay after a long break, is not surprising. With the years, it’s been tougher and tougher for him to get through the first weeks on the red: he’s not the biggest guy, and he doesn’t have the heaviest forehand nor the heaviest spin on it.
“Clay Nole” needs hours on those courts to show up
“Nole” on clay must accumulate the hours on the court and the wins under his belt to build his game, his legs, and his confidence on time for Roland-Garros. He’s been doing that for years and years, he knows how to get there. And sure, last year he reached the final of the Serbian Open after losing in the first round in Moncao before playing the semi-finals in Madrid and clinching the title in Rome so right now he looks behind on the schedule. So yes, currently his game doesn’t look up to the task at all but this in itself wouldn’t be a legitimate cause to already ring the alarm.
No, the main worry comes from his fitness condition. There is no path for Novak Djokovic on clay if his body is not in absolute top shape. He cannot compensate for it by his speed of play and his accuracy the same way he would do on hard court or on grass. On clay, he needs to be able to endure and be able to be relentless so it’s the guy on the other side that burns out. And clearly, right now, his body cannot do any of this because this right elbow is acting up. There’s no way Djokovic has been able to train the way he’d need to with this injury and so no way he’s been able to keep up with his ideal clay preparation. He hasn’t said much about this injury since his comeback so it’s impossible to say if it’s the same one he suffered years ago and had to get surgery on in 2018 after months of pain. But the memories of that rough time might be difficult to deal with too, especially because he hated the fact that he needed that surgery.
Can’t go through the top players on clay without his best forehand
If he doesn’t go into details, Djokovic doesn’t hide though that his current form won’t cut it at all if it stays this way. He will not win Roland-Garros or anything else before that if he can’t raise the bar: he needs his forehand and he needs his serve or he won’t go through anyone on that surface. Djokovic knows how it feels to be on the right track for his goals and clearly right now he’s been taken off that path. “I was way below my desired level”, he said after of course admitting that Lajovic played well too. “I can’t win against opponents who are so solid on this surface with this game. I didn’t even feel good physically on the court: I felt slow, with sluggish legs; I missed a lot of balls and was totally out of shot. At times I played well, but well below my level.”
So now what’s next? Supposedly, Madrid and Rome before Paris. Madrid being a bit faster could help him get an easier time and so to get some more wins and build from there. But it all depends on the elbow situation. Being sluggish at 35 years old after weeks and weeks spent off the Tour is logical and, Djokovic being one of the greatest athletes the game has ever had, it will get solved on time for Roland-Garros. But can he fix that elbow on time? That’s the main source of concern right now.
What’s the reasonable limit for pushing that elbow on the slowest surface?
Getting hours of play under one’s belt on clay with an elbow injury is impossible, and way too risky at this stage of his career. You don’t gamble with your joints. And Novak Djokovic on clay with the forehand we saw today against Lajovic? Not happening either.
Very few players know how to best prepare their bodies for the demands of the highest levels of this sport and Djokovic is one of them. So seeing him being that obviously concerned right now is not a good sign at all. Only he knows if that elbow is acting up because it had to get back right on clay after weeks off and it’s not 20 years old anymore, or if something more serious is going on. Some tough decisions might have to be taken soon unless Djokovic’s team finds a way to solve the fitness issues. Yes, they’ve done it many times in the past and as recently as the Australian Open. But this right elbow has long proved that it could be an entirely different battle.
As the Tour was already watching Rafael Nadal’s hip with concern, now we can share the time with some stares at Novak Djokovic’s elbow. Surely, that’s what’s going on at Roland-Garros right now: imagine not getting that Djokovic, Nadal, and Alcaraz showdown… A perfect movie demolished by a terrible twist.
