Nerves could derail history bid, Patrick Mouratoglou warns Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic will struggle under the pressure of history at the US Open, Patrick Mouratoglou has warned.
Djokovic can earn a double slice of history if he wins the US Open, with him completing a Calendar Slam as well as setting a new record for career majors in the men’s game.
Mouratoglou is Serena Williams’ coach and he has seen first hand how she has struggled to win what would be a historic 24th Grand Slam title, so he fears for Djokovic too.
Speaking to Eurosport, Mouratoglou said: “This year is special for Novak, he was always far from the two others (Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal) in terms of number of Grand Slams.
“Now, he is equal – 20 – 20 – 20. So, he knows it’s an opportunity to really re-write history and I can feel that the tension throughout the year is getting bigger and bigger.
“The first two sets of the Roland-Garros final against Stefanos Tsitsipas I felt he was super nervous, much more than usual.
“At the Olympics, he kind of lost it a little bit, he got crazy angry and he lost. I can feel it building. This moment for him is a lot about dealing with his nerves.
“In the last tournament he played he lost in a semi-final against Alex Zverev when he got crazy nervous so he has a bad taste in his mouth and he needs to get rid of it.”
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