Stefanos Tsitsipas makes revealing ‘locker room’ comment ahead of Novak Djokovic Paris 2024 clash
Stefanos Tsitsipas has claimed that he will start his preparation to face Novak Djokovic “in the locker room” ahead of a crunch Olympic clash between the two.
Top seed Djokovic and eighth seed Tsitsipas will face off in a quarter-final encounter at Paris 2024, with both men impressing in round three.
World No 2 Djokovic defeated Germany’s Dominik Koepfer in straight sets, while Greek star Stefanos Tsitsipas also prevailed in straights against Argentina’s Sebastian Baez.
It is the first Olympic quarter-final for Tsitsipas, who lost in round three at the Tokyo 2020 Games.
And, as he looks to seal a spot in a medal match, he revealed that the start of this contest will be in the “locker room”.
“I would obviously do my usual routines that I always do,” said Tsitsipas.
“Of course, for me, the practice is very important, especially the morning before the match. I try and work on the tennis court to get things right.
“And the match already starts, I believe, in the locker room. The way I prepare myself mentally and the way I construct my thoughts before I actually put them into order on the tennis court.”
All eyes are on his opponent coming into this clash, with an Olympic title the one thing missing from his stacked trophy cabinet.
And the Serbian is certainly the favourite heading in, holding an emphatic 11-2 advantage in their head-to-head.
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Two of Djokovic’s wins have come on Court Philippe Chatrier, where this match will likely take place.
He beat Tsitsipas in five sets in the last four of the 2020 French Open, before coming from two sets down to prevail in the final the following season.
Tsitsipas, 25, admitted that he understood Djokovic would be extra-motivated for this match – and revealed he is trying to focus on his own improvements on the famed court.
He added: “I wouldn’t expect anything less from Novak. I can see that he’s motivated for this edition of the Olympics and I want to get out on the court and show that I’m a worthy player on the clay courts.
“I want to make any opponent that I play work for their win and work for every single point that I try and give to them.
“I’ve gained confidence, I’ve gained a lot of motivation being on these courts. I felt that I could’ve won the Roland Garros a few years ago. I didn’t but I felt like I was really close and had every reason to believe that this could be mine one day.
“So I’m going to try and bring that type of energy and that type of belief into my game because I’ve been having some good wins in these courts and I want to bring back that game that I’ve shown against him in the past in Roland Garros.”
