Novak Djokovic still haunted by loss to Alexander Zverev

Olympics
Novak Djokovic Tokyo

If there is a single loss that haunts Novak Djokovic the most, it might just be his Tokyo Olympics defeat at the hands of Alexander Zverev.

Djokovic is desperate to add an Olympic gold medal to an otherwise enviable list of career honours.

He feels that he was closest in Tokyo but let things slip at the last.

“An Olympic medal, especially gold, is always a big wish,” Djokovic, who will be 36 at the time of the Paris Games, told Radio Television of Serbia in an interview.

“I rewound my match with Zverev in Tokyo many times, trying to figure out what went wrong,” he said.

“I played superbly up to that point, but I did feel I was running on fumes, both mentally and physically.”

Djokovic has entered the Olympic Games tournament four times with his best result coming in his first attempt in Beijing, when he claimed bronze.

Djokovic feels that he was ill-prepared for the Tokyo Games, which came at the beginning of the hard court season.

There are a few more concerns about the 2024 Olympics tennis schedule and how it will effect the Grand Slams.

The men’s singles final is scheduled to be played on Sunday 4 August just a few weeks after Wimbledon.

The Paris Olympics tennis tournament will be staged at the iconic Roland Garros Stadium, which will ensure 2024 is a huge year for both the venue and clay court tennis.

Djokovic now has three Roland Garros titles to his name, while it is unclear if his nemesis on the red stuff, Rafael Nadal, will be able to compete in 2024.

Even if Nadal isn’t at it, Djokovic still has to contend with a new generation of players who love to mix it on clay.

While Carlos Alcaraz sounding a huge warning when he beat Nadal and Djokovic back-to-back in Madrid in 2022, the Serbian turned things around on the young Spaniard in Paris this year.

Former French Open finalist Casper Ruud has been tipped to become a king of clay, while Danish prospect Holger Rune is another who enjoys clay and owns a big Masters final win over Djokovic.

Many wonder is Djokovic’s true ability on clay has been obscured by the genius of Nadal when it comes to the red stuff.

The Paris 2024 Games men’s singles tournament could be one of the most significant in recent memory as Djokovic chases that elusive gold medal.

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