6-time Grand Slam Champion Boris Becker has been surprised with the way Novak Djokovic reacted to his 2024 Australian Open exit.
The German noticed that he has rarely seen Djokovic looking this relaxed after Grand Slam losses but declared that defeat like this is inevitable just because it “just wasn’t his day.”
Sinner emphatically defeated 10-time Australian Open Champion in four sets to enter his maiden final and became the first player to ever defeat the legendary Serbian in semifinals at Melbourne Park.
The 36-year-old has not lost a completed Australian Open match since 2018 and has lost just a one Grand Slam match (2023 Wimbledon Final against Alcaraz) since 2022 French Open.
Becker who worked with Djokovic as a coach between 2014 and 2016 and helped him won 6 Grand Slam crowns and 14 ATP Masters 1000 titles was shocked by Djokovic’s post-match demeanor.
The Former World No. 1 who is a tennis commentator now a days, discussed the 24-time Grand Slam Champion’s response to a rare Melbourne loss and explained World No. 1’s own comments about his struggling form in the season-opening slam.
“In terms of form, it wasn’t his best Australian Open. He struggled with his form, his rhythm and his serve in almost all of his matches. And then today he came up against a stronger opponent,” the German said while speaking at Eurosport.
“These are surprising pictures. I don’t usually see him this relaxed after defeats. Perhaps he has realized that he doesn’t have the form at the moment and that he didn’t lose due to bad luck, but that the other player was simply better today. That’s what makes a champion, recognizing that today just wasn’t his day.”
Justine Henin, a WTA 7-time Grand Slam singles champion, also shared her take on the match from Serbian’s perspective.
“[Djokovic] had already been in a lot of trouble against [Taylor] Fritz on break points. He showed a few negative signs during this Australian Open. We all know his ability to bounce back all the time. In fact, he did so on several occasions during the tournament,” the Belgian former World No. 1 said.
“Today, it was the lack of reaction that surprised us. Sinner’s level was very, very good and we could have expected that. But the number of unforced errors, Novak Djokovic’s slowness, his inability to react… that was rather unpredictable.
“Djokovic was lucid enough to say so. But that doesn’t take anything away from the fact that you can admire your opponent and say: ‘This is one of my worst Grand Slam matches’. Because I think it’s true.”