Novak ‘must work harder’

– Novak Djokovic lost his momentum in the second half of last season and was toppled as the world No 1 by Andy Murray because his work-rate dropped, the Serbian’s former coach Boris Becker (above) said yesterday.

Speaking a day after the two terminated their cooperation by mutual consent, German Becker said Djokovic’s need to spend more time with his family had derailed him on the court.

“He didn’t spend as much time on the practice court in the last six months as he should have and he knows that,” said Becker, who helped Djokovic to six Grand Slam titles after they teamed up in 2013.

“The profession of a tennis player is probably the most selfish one in sports because it has to be about you and he is the first to say he is a family man, so of course his wife and the rest of his family had to take back seats. It is just the nature of the beast, being a tennis player,’’ he told Sky News.

‘‘He has to go back to the office and practice these hours and refocus on what made him strong in the first place.”