"When real Novak Djokovic arrives on the court, nobody can play with him" - Coach Goran Ivanisevic on Serb's ATP Finals triumph
Novak Djokovic's coach Goran Ivanisevic lavished praise on the World No. 1 following his triumph at the 2023 ATP Finals on Sunday, claiming that he knew the Serb would win the tournament as soon as he reached the semifinals.
Djokovic's semifinal qualification depended on Jannik Sinner defeating Holger Rune in their final group match. The Italian accomplished that to send himself and the veteran through to the knockouts.
While Sinner downed Daniil Medvedev in the semis, the 36-year-old Djokovic took down World No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz to book his spot in the summit clash.
On Sunday, Djokovic beat Sinner 6-3, 6-3 in front of the Turin faithful, exacting revenge for the loss against the Italian in the round robin stage.
Ivanisevic said after the final he had to thank Sinner a little bit for helping his ward reach the semifinals. But Ivanisevic added that once the Serb got there, he could see his mentality changing; the Croat sensed that no one would be able to beat Djokovic.
"I have to thank Jannik a little bit that he gave us a little help and push for him to be in the semifinal," Ivanisevic said. "But I knew as soon as he got into the semifinal, he's going to win the tournament. The mentality changed."
"The new Novak Djokovic arrived on the court from Saturday. When real Novak Djokovic arrives on the court, then the moment is nobody that can play with him," Ivanisevic added.
Touching on how the 24-time Grand Slam champion has improved compared to last year, the Croat joked that it's difficult for someone of his stature to improve anymore. At the same time, he reckons the Serb has improved his net game a lot, including his volleys and positioning at the net.
"It's very tough to improve with him (smiling). But he wants to improve. That's the good thing and bad thing for me as a coach and the rest of the team," he said.
"I think he improved a lot his volleys, his game at the net, and his position at the net. Now when he comes to the net - okay, today he missed some easy volleys - but generally this week and this year, he plays some amazing volleys," Ivanisevic added.
Goran Ivanisevic on Novak Djokovic's improvements in 2023: "He's not afraid to come to the net; he's hitting the forehands much, much harder"
Goran Ivanisevic said Novak Djokovic is going for his shots more this year compared to last. The Serb is also hitting his forehand harder and showing a greater penchant in coming to the net, according to the Croat.
Ivanisevic added that he liked his ward's new serving strategy, where he's going for his second serve instead of playing it safe like he used to.
"His position at the net is a lot better. Is very tough to pass him. Before he was very easy to pass. Now he knows what he's doing at the net. He's comfortable at the net. Final of US Open he played two, three most important volleys in the final against Medvedev," Ivanisevic said.
"He's not afraid to come to the net. He's hitting the forehands much, much harder. He's going for the shots. Serving, I think second serve, sometimes he's hitting over 200. He's just going for it," he added.
Overall, Djokovic has won seven titles in the 2023 season. He bagged three of the four Grand Slams (the Australian Open, the French Open and the US Open) and two Masters 1000 titles (Cincinnati Open and Paris Masters). He also won the ATP 250 event in Adelaide to kickstart the year, and the ATP Finals in Turin this week.