Novak Djokovic dominated the last few years because of not being able to play due to vaccine stance, says Serena Williams' ex-coach
Serena Williams' former coach Rennae Stubbs claimed that Novak Djokovic being unable to compete in tournaments due to his stance towards COVID-19 vaccination enhanced his longevity.
The Serb was unable to compete at the Australian Open and US Open in 2022 along with a few other prestigious tournaments because he was unvaccinated. Djokovic, however, has still managed to maintain his elite level of tennis.
Rennae Stubbs has said that the Serb has been able to do so because of the tournaments he missed. The Aussie was talking about how Casper Ruud's preseason did not help him in 2023 and that the Norwegian should have picked a better schedule, while talking to Andrea Petkovic on her podcast.
"What Casper Ruud did, I think that really f****d him up. Last year when he kept playing those exhos with Nadal like fine, he's like your idol and you want to go and you probably get paid millions of dollars to go do all of that but you know then he didn't play after that and then he was like 'Oh my god I'm gonna go to the tournament and i'm gonna play at the Australian Open'. It's like he needed a break," Stubbs said.
The former doubles World No. 1 said that Djokovic missing tournaments due to his stance towards vaccination helped him maintain longevity because he was resting his body for a while.
"I'm like 'Dude you got to pick your schedule a little bit better', which is why i think Novak, for example, has been able to dominate the last few years. I mean listen, the pandemic was not a friend to him. Let's face it, vaccines and all and not being able to play like three or four Grand Slams that he should have played and probably would have won, but you know what i think it's given him longevity," Stubbs said.
"Even more longevity because he actually was resting his body for a period of that time. So i think it randomly has helped him. I'm sure he'd probably like to have played," she added.
Novak Djokovic will finish 2023 as the World No. 1
Novak Djokovic is currently the World No. 1 and will finish the year in that position. This is the eighth time the Serb will end a year at the top of the ATP rankings.
Djokovic was assured of being the World No. 1 after winning his first match at the ATP Finals in Turin. He is currently 2390 points above Carlos Alcaraz.
The Serb enjoyed an impressive 2023 season, winning 56 out of 63 matches, with seven titles to his name. These include three Grand Slams, the ATP Finals and two Masters 1000 titles in Cincinnati and Paris.
Djokovic is scheduled to start the 2024 season at the United Cup representing Serbia.