Novak Djokovic is renowned for being a perfectionist when it comes to his on-court game as well as his training off it. It is this mindset and belief in his game that makes him a huge favorite to win any tournament he plays in. And it seems Djokovic is trying his best to ensure that his son, Stefan picks up these qualities from him if he chooses to play tennis professionally when he grows up.
Besides being a champion tennis player, Djokovic is a doting father to his 8-year-old son especially. They share a rather enjoyable father-son bond, which is rare since usually sons are closer to their mothers, while daughters are favorites of their fathers. But Stefan is maturing fast and has been recently seen training alongside his father at Grand Slams.
Novak Djokovic trains Stefan, reveals how he ‘intimidates’ him
Stefan seems to be bitten by the tennis bug at an early age and that is why his accomplished father claimed in an interview with the ATP Tour that he doesn’t get a ‘tennis break’ as such. It is important to stay young at heart and mind to remain motivated to play professional, competitive tennis since the demands of the game make it more serious in nature otherwise, according to Novak Djokovic. He was quick to give Stefan the credit to remind him why he started playing the game in the first place, for it’s pure, childlike joy.
While one would be tempted to think Djokovic would be extremely focused and occupied in the technicalities of training, sometimes that is not the case. At the Wimbledon Championships this year, during his breaks, the World No.2 has ensured that Stefan has a good time on the court with him. However, it gets extremely comical sometimes when Stefan tries to model his forehand not around his father, but of his biggest rival, Rafael Nadal.
According to Djokovic, the 8-year-old is extremely smart since he knows that copying the world-famous and powerful Nadal forehand annoys him and as a result, tries to push his buttons out of fun and innocence.
“He likes to do that. He likes to intimidate me on the court with finishing the swing here. He knows I don’t like that particularly. I’m trying to teach him to finish the hand here, the swing, over the shoulder. He does that, but he does this as well. Whenever he does that he always laughs because he knows. We have these kind of funny moments on the court.”
Since many years, tennis analysts have claimed that Rafael Nadal’s unique way of rotating his shoulder and swinging the forehand more up and side on, has resulted in him getting more topspin and speed than any other player on the ATP Tour. That one particular shot has won him millions of admirers, one of whom is Novak Djokovic’s son, Stefan.
The Djokovic vs Nadal rivalry over the years
While Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal may not be the best of friends off court, the mutual respect between them on court is always evident. Djokovic has time and again praised Nadal for ‘pushing him constantly’ to improve his game, calling him the toughest to play against, especially on clay. Likewise, Nadal too believes that the Serbian is the hardest to beat, on any surface at any event. No two players in the men’s singles competition over the years have played against each other, more than these two have.
Djokovic leads Nadal on head-to-head by the barest of margins, 30-29. When it comes to the Wimbledon Championships specifically, the duo last played against each other in a thrilling semi-final in 2018, which the World No.2 won in 5 sets. And in 2011, Djokovic denied Nadal two back-to-back titles at the All England Club, in turn winning his first grass-court Grand Slam in style.
However, it’s been a year since a Novak Djokovic vs Rafael Nadal match on the ATP Tour has taken place. In the French Open 2022 quarter-final, Rafael Nadal outclassed Novak Djokovic in 4 sets. The duo was seen however, at Roger Federer’s farewell at the Laver Cup in late 2022 for Team Europe.
