Novak Djokovic offers brutal response to bizarre question about his fear of Italian players

Kevin Palmer
Novak Djokovic impresses in Monte Carlo
Novak Djokovic impresses in Monte Carlo

Novak Djokovic’s passion to continue has been questioned and that appears to have fired his burners.

Djokovic played his first match since Indian Wells after choosing to skip Miami and then parting ways with long-time coach Goran Ivanisevic and the level of his performance was highly impressive as he won his opening match in Monte Carlo.

With former Serbian doubles specialist Nenad Zimonjic guiding him from the stands, Djokovic, now the oldest men’s singles number one in history, eased to a 6-1 6-2 victory over Russia’s Roman Safiullin.

Djokovic will face some stiffer tests in upcoming matches and his next could be against Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti, who beat him in Monte Carlo last year.

When asked about the prospect of playing Musetti again on the same clay court, it was clear that this is a challenge Djokovic would relish.

“I’m not scared of anything and anybody, but I really hope that I can get the chance to play him again, get the matchup, another match-up here,” he stated.

“He obviously is one of the most talented players on clay, a beautiful one-handed backhand. He’s very athletic. He can do a lot of great things. He’s one of the most promising young players not only from Italy but generally for the world.

“I like the way I played my first match compared to the first match last year. I feel much different, more ready, so whoever is across the net, I’m hoping I can deliver my best game.”

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Djokovic has not been at his brilliant best in his opening events of 2024, losing against Alex De Minaur in the ATP Cup in January and then surrendering his Australian Open title with a defeat against Jannik Sinner in Australia.

The Serbian then slumped to shock defeat against Italy’s Luca Nardi in Indian Wells, but he declared his win against Safiullin was his best performance of the year so far.

When asked if his opening match in Monte Carlo was his best performance of the year so far, Djokovic offered up a positive response.

“Yeah, my feeling was great. I think it’s an accurate judgment from the people that it’s been one of the best performances I had here in quite a few years,” he added.

“Monte Carlo is the first big tournament of the clay court season. You know, I haven’t been really able the last six, seven years to start off strong and start off well. I’ve always kind of struggled in this tournament.

“Again, it’s just the beginning of the tournament. It’s one match. I’m going to hope to work tomorrow to maintain that rhythm and focus, obviously trying to perform as well as I did in the second match as well as I did today.

“Matches are only going to get tougher. Obviously the opponents, I’m playing either Musetti or Fils, are completely different players than Safiullin. They love playing on clay, more spin on the balls so it’s a different matchup.

“I like really the way I felt today on the court, the way I was striking the ball. I think the two, three weeks of training I had is paying off really, you know, good training block with Zimonjic and with the team.

“We put in a lot of hours into thinking about the game, the movement, and things that haven’t really worked for me in the first couple tournaments of this year that I played.

“It’s a great start. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves and put hopes too high. It’s only one match, but the way I felt, I’m really pleased.”

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