21-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic admitted that having an interrupted calendar wasn’t ideal but he found a way to use the situation to his advantage. After winning Wimbledon, Djokovic missed the entire North American hard court swing – the US Open and Masters events in Montreal and Cincinnati because he wasn’t allowed to enter the United States and Canada as an unvaccinated foreigner.
While forcefully sidelined, Djokovic spent some quality time with his family and also worked on his tactics and technique. When Djokovic returned to action, he captured back-to-back titles at the Tel Aviv Open and Astana Open.
A tennis season lasts 11 months so Djokovic usually has just one month to work on the specifics of his game.
Djokovic on how he used the time off
In an interview with Eurosport, Djokovic explained how he made sure not to waste time while sidelined.
“It’s not an ideal calendar but those are the circumstances I had to accept and deal with it. I tried to use the time I had to rest and spend quality time with family and work on my game. I liked the time I had to work on specifics in terms of tactics, and technique, whatever it is, there is always something to work on but in tennis, we never have time because the season is so long and we play week after week from January to the end of November.
I used it in the best possible way and that has reflected in a positive way on my game in the last two tournaments. I am hoping to continue that run. I wanted to play here because I have done so well here in the past and coming into the ATP Finals you want to have more matches at the highest level so hopefully I can have a great week here and finish the season in the best possible way,” Djokovic told Eurosport. This week, Djokovic is competing at the Paris Masters, where he is aiming to defend his title.
