Novak Djokovic jokingly claims he can coach Nick Kyrgios to 5 Grand Slams
After his opening match at the 2023 Srpska Open, Novak Djokovic was asked which tennis player he would like to coach, to which he immediately said 'Nick Kyrgios'.
Beginning in 2019, the two players regularly targeted each other with pot shots and digs. But what started as a challenging relationship changed dramatically when Kyrgios stood up for the Serb after the latter was deported from Australia due to his unvaccinated status last year.
In the 2022 Wimbledon Championships, where both of them reached the final, they revealed that they had become great friends. Djokovic beat the 24th-ranked Australian player in four sets to lift his seventh trophy at SW19.
Kyrgios, who is recovering from a knee injury, still leads 2-1 head-to-head against the World No. 1.
In a press conference after beating Frenchman Luca Van Assche 6-7(4), 6-3, 6-2, the 22-time Grand Slam Champion joked that he could train Kyrgios and help him win five Majors, but added that it would cost the 27-year-old a fortune.
"I would like to coach Kyrgios. He would have won five Grand Slams with me, but it would have cost him dearly," Djokovic said.
The Serb struggled with an elbow issue at the 2023 Monte-Carlo Masters and lost to Italy's Lorenzo Musetti in the third round earlier this month. Upon arriving in Banja Luka for the ATP 250 event, he stated that his elbow was not in the best shape but that it was "good enough" to allow him to compete.
After winning his opening match on Wednesday (April 19), he remarked that the elbow was feeling better and that he was healthy once again.
"The elbow is fine, it lasted over two and a half hours of the match and is holding up well. These conditions are not good for the joints and the elbow, in my case, but I'm glad that I managed to endure everything as it should. I am healthy and eager for new victories," he said.
Novak Djokovic happy with the way he played on "the slowest court" at Srpska Open 2023
Novak Djokovic downed 87th-ranked Luca Van Assche in the second round of the 2023 Srpska Open and improved his win-loss record for the season to 17-2. However, in an on-court interview, the Serb remarked that it was the "slowest conditions" he had ever played in and expressed satisfaction with his win.
“It wasn’t easy. This would probably rank as the slowest court, slowest conditions I’ve ever played in, to be honest,” Djokovic said. "I couldn’t penetrate through the court. I couldn’t put any ball past him. He was on every single ball for a set-and-a-half until I started to get some rhythm going. I’m happy with the way I finished the match. Of course, I can always play better, but a win is a win.”
Djokovic will face either compatriot Dusan Lajovic or France's Gregoire Barrere in the quarterfinals on April 21.