Agassi’s a big fan of Djokovic’s chances
ANDRE Agassi is backing Novak Djokovic to “absolutely” win the Australian Open and has revealed he isn’t even receiving expenses to advise the Serbian superstar.
“There’s no way for me to hide this. Somebody has to get three sets against him and that is really, really hard to do,” Agassi said yesterday.
Djokovic resumes his quest for an unprecedented seventh men’s singles crown at Melbourne Park today when he plays Spaniard Albert Ramos-Vinolas. The thirdround encounter will take place 48 hours after Djokovic urged Open officials to postpone matches until fierce temperatures dropped amid concerns for player welfare.
Djokovic’s vanquished second-round opponent Gael Monfils said he was “dying” on court, but Agassi is not the least bit concerned about his charge’s ability to back up.
“Recovery is not something I worry about with him,” Agassi said. “Novak is physically extraordinary and he has a recovery ability that is unlike mine, probably just because the nature of how his body is made and how efficient he is and how much work he’s put in. The guy has a capacity for pushing himself that is unique to my eyes.”
Agassi insisted the brutal conditions on Thursday were “an advantage to Novak” and would not affect the rest of his campaign. More of interest to Agassi was how Djokovic’s new service motion, designed to help protect his injured elbow, would hold up in his first tournament back after six months out of the game.