Novak Djokovic is one of the most successful men’s tennis players of all-time. The World No.2 created history at the French Open in June, winning a record 23rd Grand Slam title. The man who he overtook was none other than Spain’s Rafael Nadal. As a result, the tennis community is still divided when it comes to picking between Djokovic and Nadal. However, this does not seem to be the case with Stefanos Tsitsipas.
The Greek star, who is ranked 5th in the world at present, is one of the few players to have played against both of them on several occasions. It would be safe to say ironically, that Tsitsipas has a rather jaw-dropping take on the debate.
Stefanos Tsitsipas praises Novak Djokovic over Rafael Nadal
Stefanos Tsitsipas has lot of work to do in this year’s Wimbledon considering his poor grass record so far and his potential opponents. Should he make it far enough, he could take on Novak Djokovic in the Final of the tournament. Interestingly, in their last 10 encounters, Tsitsipas has failed to beat Djokovic even once, making their rivalry one-sided. Speaking to the Greek publication Sports DNA, the World No.5 opened up on the Serbian’s dominance in tennis and his success formula –
“He is stubborn, to me, is the truth. And I want like crazy to be able to win and show that I’m capable of doing something too, but he’s found the secret recipe of how he can be there in every slam, and go deep without any problem against any opponent. It works like clockwork!
“I have observed his routines and seen how professional he is at what he does. It’s completely normal that he’s playing at this level.”
While these facts are well known about Djokovic, Tsitsipas went on to shock many with his following comments in which he dragged Rafael Nadal for a rather baseless comparison.
“I don’t want to say anything bad about Nadal, but he has different routines that have cost him his career with injuries, and I know why these things happen.
“Novak has avoided it. His diet is the most incredible in tennis, his recovery is the most advanced I have seen.
“So I also take some elements and add them to my own tennis. I think that’s also why he is going so strong at an age where you’d think your level would drop, which is normal.”
Tennis community responds by dragging Tsitsipas’ love life and past records
It was natural that Tsitsipas’ comments were not going to be taken well by tennis lovers, especially those who are ardent admirers of Rafael Nadal. Hilariously, many pointed out that Tsitsipas hasn’t won a single Grand Slam himself till date, while Nadal has 22 of them and in fact, had won plenty of them already when he was Tsitsipas’ age. Others mentioned about his relationship with Spanish women’s star, Paula Badosa hampering his judgment.
Remarkably, Tsitsipas has only beaten Nadal twice in their 9 ATP Tour matches so far with half of those losses coming in straight sets. The comments have further gained traction since the Greek player has been full of praise for the Spaniard veteran over the years. At present, Tsitsipas aims to win the Wimbledon 2023 title, taking on one of his oldest rivals, Dominic Thiem in a blockbuster Round of 128, which stands suspended at the moment at 6-4, 3-4 in favor of the Austrian.
