At the French Open, Novak Djokovic Is Aiming to Rewind to 2016

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Thiem could be a particularly significant test for Djokovic if they both reach the semifinals. Zverev, based on current form, is a rightful underdog. He insists he has enjoyed being out of the spotlight with the focus on Stefanos Tsitsipas, the emerging 20-year-old from Greece who lost to Djokovic in the Madrid Open final and fell in a five-set, five-hour-and-nine-minute epic against Stan Wawrinka in the fourth round here.

“The best thing that could have happened for me is how good Tsitsipas’s clay-court season was,” Zverev said. “He was kind of the new superstar all of a sudden, and for me it was kind of a nice thing that not all of the attention of the kind of NextGen thing is only going towards my way.”

Khachanov, 23, is a new-wave player, too, although he has more in common with his elders in that he and his wife, Veronika, are expecting their first child.

Djokovic, 32 and the father of two young children with his wife, Jelena, has learned plenty about work-life balance through the years. After his loss to Cecchinato here, he emerged from a two-year slump to win Wimbledon and then return to No. 1. This season, after overwhelming Nadal in the Australian Open final, he lost early in several tournaments before recovering his mojo to win in Madrid.

Serving as president of the ATP Player Council has been a drain this year, with the contentious decision not to renew the contract of Chris Kermode, the ATP Tour chief executive, and the tumultuous resignation of the ATP board member Justin Gimelstob after an assault conviction. Djokovic and Gimelstob were working closely together in an attempt to increase player influence.

Djokovic’s advisers were convinced he needed to take a step back to find his top gear on court. Janko Tipsarevic, his friend and fellow Serbian player, told me in a recent interview that the waves generated by Kermode’s ouster, which could still be revisited, had been particularly destabilizing.



Source : NYtimes