"Grand Slams and playing for the national team are the two most important goals that I have" - Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic led Serbia to the semifinals of the Davis Cup, setting up a final four clash with Croatia after defeating Kazakhstan. During his post-match conference, he spoke about how much playing in the Davis Cup meant to him. He also talked about the team's performance as well as his own.
Djokovic has always been vocal about his preference to play at Grand Slams and national events. In the press conference, he reaffirmed his priorities:
"I have spoken about the importance of the majors, and I don't know if you have seen it or heard it, but always when I said what are the biggest priorities for me at this stage of my career, I always said it's Grand Slams and playing for national team. Those are the two most important goals, let's say, that I have throughout the years."
Djokovic said he feels quite motivated to play for Serbia, and as long as he's healthy he'll always represent the country. Team events with a huge history like the Davis Cup--an exception in an individual sport like tennis--always make him emotional. It's the same with the ATP Cup, the only other team event in the sport.
"I just feel so much motivation, and I am inspired to be part of the team. As long as I'm healthy, I'll be there for the captain. I'll try to be available always for the team, because the team competitions like Davis Cup, particularly Davis Cup that is the most historic team competition that we have in our sport that is an individual sport, other than Davis Cup you have the ATP Cup, you have the two big competitions for team that just provoke the most beautiful emotions in me. I'm very motivated to play for Serbia."
The win tonight means a lot not only to Djokovic, but his team as well. Other than the World No. 1, the Serbian team consists of upcoming players who are the future of the national team.
"Of course it means a lot to me personally, but I think to all of us because we, you know, we are also relatively young team. Next to me, the guys are supposed to take the torch in the future and lead this national team. Viktor retired this year as active player, and now he's a captain."
While there are a lot of changes happening within the team, Djokovic said that as long as he is able to contribute in a positive manner, he'll always be there for the team.
"So there is a lot of changes happening. We are trying to find the right team that will be carrying the flag of our country in the years to come. So as long as I'm able to contribute in a positive way, I will be here."
Novak Djokovic felt very solid in his match against Alexander Bublik, is excited to play against Croatia next
The Serbian said the quarterfinal matches were quite difficult, especially because doubles ended up being the decider.
"Of course it is. When the doubles are deciding a winner, you play into night, almost midnight, it's anybody's game, really, in doubles."
kecmanovic" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-is-sponsored="false">Miomir Kecmanovic came really close to winning his singles tie, but Mikhail Kukushkin saved match points to secure an epic win for Kazakhstan. Djokovic praised Kukushkin, an experienced player who's won some big matches for his country.
"Unfortunately for Kecmanovic, he was very close to winning it, match points, but credit to Kukushkin for fighting back and showing why, you know, why he's an experienced, quality tennis player that loves to play for Kazakhstan, and he had some big wins, some marathon wins for his country."
All hail Mikhail 🤪
Four match points saved, Kukushkin serves up a "crazy" victory for Kazakhstan
#DavisCupFinals #byRakuten https://t.co/x11osBZRx8
While Djokovic agreed that it was a tough debut for Kecmanovic, there were a lot of positives to take from the match. It wasn't easy for the Serb to play after watching his teammate's rollercoaster match, but ultimately found the right balance to win.
"A tough debut for Kecmanovic, but a lot of positives to take out for that, for him and for us I think in general. Of course it wasn't easy for me to step out on the court because I was emotionally going through that roller coaster of first win, but managed to find the right stability, mentally and physically, I think from the very beginning, and I did everything that I wanted to do in the match."
Despite some early hiccups, Djokovic thought his performance against Alexander Bublik was quite solid.
"Early break against Bublik that I never faced before. Served out pretty well the entire match. Maybe just one or two games in my service games where I was in trouble, faced I think just one breakpoint. All in all, very solid performance."
1⃣8⃣ straight Davis Cup singles wins!
Djokovic moves the tie to all square, defeating Bublik 6-3, 6-4.
#DavisCupFinals #byRakuten https://t.co/413sYyPKMP
After winning his singles match to level terms in the quarterfinals, Djokovic still thought the doubles match could go either way. He hasn't played much with Nikola Cacic and this was the decisive tie.
"Then again, as I said, doubles, anybody's game. Niko and I did not play too many times with each other, and this kind of format in Davis Cup, doubles are super important, you know, because if you lose one singles, doubles are deciding."
Djokovic stated that the Kazakh duo had played together a lot more than him and Cacic. Losing close matches previously in doubles was also on their mind.
"Nedovyesov and Golubev are a team that has played together for much more than me and Nikola, and we lost the first two matches 7-6 in the third set national team earlier this year in ATP Cup and also few days ago against Germany."
Despite their initial doubts, Djokovic and Cacic did well to bounce back in the doubles tie, with a lot of encouragement from the Serbian team. Djokovic is relieved to have qualified, but also excited for the upcoming matches.
"That was in our minds, of course, but I think we did very well to bounce back after second set, find the right energy and encouragement from our team, from our captain. Huge relief, but also excited about the next challenge."
Also Check Out: Updated Tennis Schedule 2022