Djokovic credits Becker for return to form

July 9, 2014

 

 

Novak Djokovic

New Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic has credited head coach Boris Becker for helping him improve the mental side of his game, Sportal.com.au reports.

The Serbian had lost his previous three grand slam finals before defeating seven-time Wimbledon winner Roger Federer in Sunday’s thrilling five-set showpiece at the All England Club.

Djokovic’s victory also means he returns to the top of the world rankings ahead of Rafael Nadal, and the 27-year-old has hailed the impact of six-time grand-slam champion Becker, who became his new head coach last December.

“He (Becker) knows exactly what kind of challenges I have to face mentally to play big tournaments and big matches,” Djokovic said.

“Then of course also considering the fact that he was so successful and dominant on grass courts, he won Wimbledon three times and played several finals, he understands very well the movement on the grass and the kind of game plan that can be successful.

“When you get to the big matches, of course you want to rely on your best shots and mentally be strong, and that’s what we talked about most and trying to prepare myself psychologically for what’s expecting me on the court and in the critical moments if they come and there were many, many yesterday.

“We (Djokovic and Federer) pushed each other to the limit. We both played some top tennis and of course having Boris on the side in the box, alongside all of my other team members was definitely helpful.”

Djokovic has been considered as part of a ‘big four’ in men’s tennis along with Federer, Nadal and Andy Murray in recent years, but that quartet is beginning to be challenged by the likes of Grigor Dimitrov and Milos Raonic, who were semi-finalists at Wimbledon.

And Djokovic is excited to see how the dynamic of the sport will pan out in the future.

“Nadal and Federer were so dominant for so many years, then Murray and myself, we got into this mix and now we have younger players who are hungry for success and eager to win,” he added.

“But if they can go far, that doesn’t depend only on them, it depends on us as well, so it’s a strong competition and let’s see how it goes.”