Novak Djokovic will achieve "immortality" if he wins Calendar Slam, many don't like him because he says what he thinks: Goran Ivanisevic
Goran Ivanisevic believes his charge Novak Djokovic will achieve immortality if he manages to win the Calendar Slam this year. Ivanisevic also feels that Djokovic is not as popular as the other two members of the Big 3 because he is different from them and is not afraid to speak his mind.
Novak Djokovic has already won the Australian Open, Roland Garros and Wimbledon this year. He needs one more Major to complete the Calendar Slam and, more importantly, claim the all-time Slam record for himself.
The Serb won his 20th Major at the Championships last month. That helped Djokovic draw level with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal at the top of the Slam leaderboard.
Even though the Serb picked up an injury during his unsuccessful quest to win gold at the Tokyo Olympics, he is still the unanimous favorite to lift the title at Flushing Meadows in a few weeks' time.
His coach Goran Ivanisevic believes that Novak Djokovic will cement his position at the top of the tennis pyramid with a win at the US Open. The Croat even claimed that Djokovic's potential Calendar Slam would hold more weight than Rod Laver's (1962 and 1969) because of how competitive the sport currently is.
"I am part of a team that writes history," Ivanisevic said in an interview with Croatian paper Vecernji. "If Djokovic wins the US Open this year and collects all four Grand Slams in the same year, he enters immortality, the rank of Rod Laver, although it is much harder to achieve such success in the 21st century than in Laver's time. It was not easy for him, five or six years ago no one could have imagined that Novak would be in a position to make this historic feat."
Despite Djokovic's sustained dominance on the men's tour, the Serb has not received the same respect and adulation as his biggest rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
Ivanisevic believes this is due to the fact that the Serb announced himself on the tour at a time when people had already sworn their allegiances to Federer or Nadal.
"Novak appeared at the top of world tennis after Federer and Nadal, when they had already gained a large number of fans," said the Croat. "Then a Balkan man came and messed up all their accounts."
Djokovic's coach further explained that the Serb's forthrightness often rubs people the wrong way.
"Novak says what he thinks, and many don't like it," said Ivanisevic. "He speaks five languages, he is extremely intelligent, he is interested in everything and has his own way of life. Some like the way he eats, some don't like it, some laugh at the meditation he is dedicated to, while he fully believes in it. I admire him. I watch him in the morning like practicing yoga for an hour and a half, in an indescribable, fascinating way."
Novak Djokovic doesn't fit into the Western mould: Goran Ivanisevic
Novak Djokovic often finds himself in the crosshairs of the Western media. The Serb was recently unfairly vilified during the Tokyo Olympics for his comments regarding mental health, which were misconstrued by large sections of the media.
Even in the past, the Serb has been painted in a bad light for certain innocuous comments he made. Goran Ivanisevic believes Djokovic has been treated unfairly.
The Croat reckons Djokovic's Balkan heritage has made him a go-getter as opposed to having things handed to him, which Ivanisevic feels is the case in the Western world.
"It seems to me that it is not desirable to have an opinion today," Djokovic's coach said. "The world should move for the better, but we are going in the opposite direction. If in the 21st century you can't say what you think, it's a disaster. Novak doesn't fit into that Western mould in which everything is arranged. He came from the Balkans where nothing is arranged and conquered them all."