Novak Djokovic was tied into knots and sent out of the French Open with a semifinal loss to Dominic Thiem on June 8. The Serbian tennis icon lost 6-2, 3-6, 7-5, 5-7, 7-5, to Thiem.
Despite lost the game, the world No.1 claims that his family the main support and motivation for success to play tennis for many more years to come.
“It took me one day, one night exactly to get over it. It used to be a lot more painful, sadness and disappointment were more intense. They‘re still there, but I recuperate way better. Life goes on and I am a father of two kids, I can‘t allow myself to dwell on it too much.” Djokovic told Serbian reporters.
“Having a family helps me a lot in that regard. I am healthy and I feel motivated and inspired to play tennis for many more years to come.” Djokovic added.
When asked about the next tennis generation, Djokovic concluded Alexander Zverez is leading new generation male tennis stars so far.
Along with Stefanos Tsitsipas, Denis Shapovalov, Felix Auger-Aliassime, and Dominic Thiem are all in the top 20 of the next Gen rankings.
“Looking at the results in the past few years, Zverev is the leader of a new generation. Stefanos Tsitsipas is right behind, he has the chance to surpass him in the rankings. But not only looking at the rankings, apart from these two.” Djokovic said.
“There are a few other players who have demonstrated with their dedication, professionalism and passion on and off the court that they see their goals clearly and that they can be leaders – Denis Shapovalov, Felix Auger-Aliassime and Dominic Thiem, who is a bit older than them though.
“They are good people above all, success is not only about trophies, but it‘s also about influencing younger generations, having respect towards tennis, colleagues, tournaments, about value. They have what it takes to be champions in every aspect,” Djokovic added.
Djokovic returned to world No.1 following Rafael Nadal’s withdrawal from the Paris Masters in last year.
