"Novak Djokovic is like Rafael Nadal" - Jimmy Connors refuses to rule out Serb's chances of future success
Jimmy Connors has likened Novak Djokovic to Rafael Nadal. The 72-year-old and eight-time singles Major winner recently opined that despite the Serb's recent vulnerabilities, he remains a contender for the biggest prizes in men's tennis.
Djokovic dominated the Grand Slams in 2023, having reached the final in all four of them. He triumphed in all Major title clashes that year, barring Wimbledon.
However, the 37-year-old's fortunes in Majors have drastically changed in 2024. At the Australian Open, Novak Djokovic was ousted by eventual champion Jannik Sinner in the semifinals. The Serb's French Open hopes were then extinguished by a knee injury as he had to withdraw from his quarterfinal clash.
While Djokovic did reach the Wimbledon final again, he was put to the sword by Alcaraz for the second straight year. At the US Open, he suffered a shock third-round loss to Alexei Popyrin.
Apart from the Majors, the Serb's participation has been limited. He has featured only in a handful of events, but has still been unable to snap his title drought. His sole success this year came at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where he won the gold medal after getting the better of Alcaraz at the last hurdle.
Jimmy Connors recently assessed how the rest of the ATP Tour have realized that the 24-time Grand Slam champion is no longer as imperious as he once was. Connors' assessment came during an episode of the Advantage Connors podcast, which he co-hosts with his son Brett. However, the 72-year-old acknowledged that the Serb still possesses the on-court weapons needed to be successful.
"He's (Djokovic) not quite playing at the standard that they're used to seeing so that gives them a little confidence too. But I also got to say that he's got the kind of game that I like. Steps into the ball, takes it a little bit early. He's got a good return, aggressive return," Connors said. (at 30:32)
The former World No. 1 proceeded to liken Djokovic to Rafael Nadal, suggesting that the Serb is as gritty and gutsy as the Spaniard, who has always had a penchant for bouncing back to his best in the face of adversity. Connors suggested that he cannot possibly dismiss the 24-time Major winner's chances of further glory.
"And also, I'm not counting him out ever. He's got guts. He's got the game. He's got the intensity. He's in shape. He's like Nadal. He's not going to go out there unless he is ready to play," Connors added.
The Serb and the Spaniard, men's tennis' most prolific rivals in terms of matches played, recently faced each other one last time before the latter's imminent retirement.
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal locked horns at the Six Kings Slam
The recently-concluded Six Kings Slam exhibition event saw Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal contest the third-place match after both players had lost in their respective semifinals. The Serb came out on top with a 6-2, 7-6(5) win.
The great rivals later expressed their admiration and respect for each other, and spoke up about how they had pushed each other to their limits in a rivalry that spanned over a decade, consisting of 60 official matches. The Serb leads the head-to-head 31-29.
Nadal will call time on his illustrious career following the conclusion of his 2024 Davis Cup Finals campaign for Spain. Meanwhile, Djokovic has stated his intention to keep fighting for Majors. However, the Serb recently pulled out from the 2024 Rolex Paris Masters, the prestigious ATP Masters 1000 event that he has won a record seven times.