Djokovic: Progressing but Not Satisfied

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Djokovic: Progressing but Not Satisfied

After his 7-6(1), 6-4, 6-4 win over Jaume Munar, Novak Djokovic opened up to reporters about his process and admitted that he’s still not satisfied with his game ahead of a third-round matchup with Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut.

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It’s not surprising, given that Djokovic has only begun to hit his stride after racking up six wins in his last seven contests since the start of his uptick in form at Rome.

“I went through my ups and downs,” he said. “I’m not really satisfied with the performance but I just played enough in the right moments to win the match—hopefully the level will increase and will get better in the next match.”

When asked by French reporter Carole Bouchard, Djokovic elaborated further. He admitted that he has been surprised to find that he needs more matches to build his confidence, something he didn’t expect as he began his comeback.

“It’s several things,” he said. “Obviously I’ve mentioned several times before that the best practice you can have is a match. I haven’t had too many matches and I really never thought that I’m going to be challenged in that way mentally, that I need matches in order to get confidence, but obviously I’m learning something new.”

The next step for Djokovic is to eliminate the mental ebbs and flows that still creep into his game at times, and he says it’s still a work in progress, but getting better as he has racked up wins of late.

“That’s the case,” he said. “At times I do lose maybe comfort level on the court and confidence and that’s something that I’m still building obviously. The more matches I play the better it is. The more I win the better it is—hopefully that can keep going.”

Djokovic, now a husband and father of two sons, also admitted that he’s embracing the challenge and wholeheartedly throwing himself into maintain a healthy balance between work and family. It’s something we don’t hear about too often from professional tennis players, but Djokovic has never been the typical athlete.

He wants to get back to the top of tennis but he also wants to do it on his own terms.

“I’m not and I don’t want to be the same person and player that I was two, three, four years ago,” Djokovic said. “It’s just different. I have a different life. I’m a father of two children, and there are a lot of different things that I prioritize in life and it’s not only about tennis, which has been the case before. You have to adjust to it, embrace it, and try to find the best possible solutions to balance everything and thrive in every aspect of your life.”

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