Andy Roddick has expressed his concerns about Novak Djokovic for two reasons after the 24-time Grand Slam champion was defeated by Jannik Sinner in the semifinal of Australian Open.
The 2003 US Open champion believes age is catching up with Djokovic and feels his younger rivals can trouble him by punching him in the mouth.
The World No. 1 was handed an emphatic defeat by Sinner in the semifinals of the Australian Open last week. The four-set loss was Djokovic’s first loss at the tournament since 2018. Having claimed his maiden crown at Melbourne Park in 2008k, the legendary Serbian over the period of 15 years has clinched a men’s record 10 Australian Open titles.
After his heartbreaking final four loss against 22-year-old Sinner, the 36-year old was highly critical of his level.
“Look, I was, in a way, shocked with my level, you know, in a bad way. There was not much I was doing right in the first two sets (smiling). Yeah, I guess this is one of the worst Grand Slam matches I’ve ever played. At least that I remember,” Djokovic said in his post-championship press conference.
In his newly-launched, Served with Andy Roddick podcast, Roddick discussed Djokovic’s Australian Open campaign, and weighed in on Serbian’s potential upcoming tournaments.
“He kind of limped out of this tournament a little bit, you know, through no fault of his own, the guy’s been better than anyone on Earth, and it’s gonna happen,” the 32-time ATP tour titlist said.
“But I’m a little concerned that: one, he’s not getting younger. When it turns, it turns quickly. Also, he has guys that can punch him in the mouth, you know, he has this new generation that once they know they can beat him, they’re not going to revert to the – the mentality that there’s no way to beat him.
“Well, I think it’s going to be about the mental gymnastics and how those play out. Like, I for 10 years haven’t been concerned about Novak playing Indian Wells or Miami or whichever hard-court event he’s gonna play next.
“Like, it’s just not as important as the Slams and he’s been able to show up to the Slams and play well and get results. I’m very interested to see how he comes out of the gates in an Indian Wells or a Miami and kind of the pressure and the defeat on a massive level.”
The World No. 1 is yet to confirm his next tournament, but it is likely to appear at the Indian Wells Masters in March given he has not entered the Dubai Tennis Championships – an event that is normally included in his tennis calendar.
Roddick also spoke about Djokovic’s ability to get himself going despite difficult situations in matches something the American felt he couldn’t go do against Sinner.
“He’s normally good at finding someone to fight with, you know, and using that as a tool to kind of get him going. Frankly, we’ve all been there,” Roddick added.
“Novak way less than the rest of us, which is why he is who he is. The rest of us, you know, are in our garages doing podcasts. His ability to kind of find a way to motivate himself is also a superpower, right?”