Novak Djokovic begins Roland Garros preparations by training with a Grand Slam champion
Novak Djokovic has arrived at Roland Garros, where he is looking to win a long-awaited 25th Grand Slam at the Paris event.
Djokovic has only played one clay court match ahead of Roland Garros this year, which came in a defeat to Dino Prizmic at the Italian Open in Rome.
The Serbian will be the third seed at Roland Garros, behind only Jannik Sinner and Alexander Zverev, after Carlos Alcaraz’s withdrawal from the Grand Slam.
Ahead of the tournament main draw, which is set to begin on Sunday, May 24th, Djokovic has been practicing with some high-profile names in Paris.
He started his preparations with a practice session alongside Zverev, who is set to be one of his biggest challengers for the Grand Slam.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion has also been put through his paces with one of his biggest historical rivals on the ATP Tour: 2014 US Open champion Marin Cilic.
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The two great rivals played for an hour on Court Simone Mathieu in front of a packed-out audience looking to get a glimpse of the two Grand Slam champions.
The pair then returned an hour later to play on Roland Garros’ biggest court, Philippe-Chatrier, a court they have both played on for over two decades at this point.
Djokovic and Cilic have been rivals on the ATP Tour since their first meeting all the way back in 2008, when the Serbian beat the Croatian at the Dubai Tennis Championships.
It has been a one-sided rivalry since, with Djokovic winning 20 of their 22 matches together on the ATP Tour. Djokovic has knocked Cilic out of five Grand Slams in his career.
Cilic’s only victories against Djokovic came back-to-back, when he knocked the Serbian star out of the quarter-finals of the Paris Masters in 2016 and followed it up with a victory in the 2018 Queen’s final.
Their last meeting came in 2015, when Djokovic defeated Cilic at the Shanghai Masters. The Serbian won 7-6, 6-4 to confirm his place in the third round of the Masters tournament.
That match saw Djokovic and Cilic become the two oldest opponents in an ATP 1000 Masters event in tennis history, with a combined age of 75y 139d.
Cilic is currently ranked World No. 46 on the ATP Tour rankings, so he will not be seeded for the Grand Slam. His will, however, earn instant access into the main draw.
The Croatian’s best result at the Paris Grand Slam came in 2022, when he reached the semi-finals of the competition. He was beaten in four sets by Casper Ruud.
Djokovic, meanwhile, has won Roland Garros three times in his career – in 2016, 2021, and 2023.
