Novak Djokovic: "If I don't want to be humble and be honest, I'm winning the ATP Finals"
Novak Djokovic recently declared that he would reign supreme at the ATP Finals 2023 if he wanted to be "honest and not humble." He also said he would stand by the same prediction even if he were to be humble.
Djokovic, along with a host of other contestants in Turin such as Daniil Medvedev and Carlos Alcaraz, were asked to make a bold prediction ahead of the tournament. The Serb, who will begin his ATP Finals campaign against Holger Rune, responded by expressing full confidence in himself.
"If I dont want to be humble and be honest, I'm winning the tournament. If I want to be humble, I'm also winning the tournament," Djokovic said.
Not all the ATP Finals contestants were as self-assured as Novak Djokovic. World No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz predicted that there would be a lot of close matches, in both the singles and doubles events.
"It's going to be a lot of close matches in singles and doubles," said the Spaniard.
Medvedev, meanwhile, chose to go with a rather unusual prediction, stating that someone would win a video review while overruling a call from the umpire or line judge.
"If there is video review this year, probably yes, someone is going to win it, they are going to overrule the decision because I'm not sure It happened," the Russian said.
"We are going to see a lot of him in the future" - Novak Djokovic on Holger Rune
Novak Djokovic had earlier stated that Holger Rune and Carlos Alcaraz were the leaders of the next generation, and that one of them would carry the game in the coming decade.
Djokovic also said he was expecting a close match against Holger Rune in Turin, while highlighting the fact that Boris Becker was now part of the Dane's coaching team.
“Holger has his debut in the [Nitto ATP] Finals. Obviously, along with Alcaraz, they are the same generation, one of the leaders of the Next Gen and probably one of the players that will carry the tennis in the decade to come,” Djokovic said.
"We’re going to see a lot of him I'm sure in the future. He's got Boris Becker, the legend of the game in his corner now and he's been improving himself as well. Every time we face each other, it's a close match, so I'll probably have to expect that one again," the Serb told ATP media.
Novak Djokovic is part of the Green Group at the ATP Finals along with Jannik SInner, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Holger Rune. Djokovic will take on Rune on Sunday, November 12 in the first of his matches in Turin.