Family matters help Djokovic’s revival
RETURN OF VAJDA AS COACH ALSO PLAYED ITS PART IN THE SERB’S RESURGENCE
As a man firmly in touch with his spiritual side, who once enlisted a Spanish “love and peace” guru specialising in long hugs, Novak Djokovic might have been expected to go heavy on Sunday on the concept of rebirth.
A fourth Wimbledon title, just five weeks after an early French Open exit left him so crestfallen that he doubted whether he would even play on grass this summer: it was enough to make anybody invoke the powers of the divine.
And yet at the moment of triumph, Djokovic kept it all delightfully simple.
There was no thumping of his chest, no superhero shredding of his sweat-drenched top. His greatest indulgence was to help himself to a double portion of the Centre Court grass, about as much as his strict gluten-free diet, needed to maintain that pipe-cleaner physique, would permit.
Then, in a gesture that lifted the crowd’s lukewarm reception, he turned to his box and showed off the golden Challenge Cup for his three-yearold son, Stefan, to admire. While All England Club edicts do not allow for toddlers under the age of five to watch matches on show courts — no tantrums on break points, thank you very much — they were at least relaxed for the after-party.
This was one trophy that Djokovic, even with his ascetic nutrition regime, deserved to celebrate long and hard. For the impression throughout this Wimbledon fortnight was that the Serb had re-established control over not just his game, but his life, too. For almost two years, his private affairs had been the subject of some uncomfortably public debate.
Newspapers in his homeland alleged that he had endangered his marriage with several liaisons, while John McEnroe said last year that the fallen world No. 1 “had some off-court issues with the family”.
McEnroe controversially invited a parallel between Djokovic and Tiger Woods, as examples of sportsmen whose form apparently disintegrated due to troubles on the domestic front. It is a comparison he has now thrown off.
This tournament has shown a version of Djokovic that some feared had gone for good: the consummate retriever, haring down every lost cause, trading blows with Rafael Nadal for the best part of 5 1/2 hours, and ultimately reaching a fifth Wimbledon final that he won with room to spare against Kevin Anderson in the fierce sunshine.
Conspicuously, there has also been a reassertion of Djokovic the family man. While his wife Jelena was notably absent courtside at last year’s Wimbledon, she was back front and centre for his victories here. It was a narrative not explicitly stated in the questions Djokovic received last night “about everything you’ve been through these last 18 months”.
This was one trophy that Djokovic, even with his ascetic nutrition regime, deserved to celebrate long and hard.
Greater respect
The man of the hour preferred to focus on his battle to recover from a serious elbow injury, but the restoration of peace and harmony at home has proved crucial in his return to the summit.
Djokovic will always be a figure admired rather than adored on these lawns. One could tell as much from the muted reactions that his play attracted in this comfortable quelling of Anderson. When he faced set point at 5-4 down in the third, some fans called out with the ball in mid-air, as if willing his forehand to go long.
Not unreasonably, he glared at umpire James Keothavong in reproach. He has reason to feel that he deserves greater respect on this stage, especially given he has amassed more championships here than McEnroe or Boris Becker. After Roger Federer and Pete Sampras, he is only the third man to have won four Wimbledon titles in the Open era.
It was quite the flourish with which to confirm the revival of the greatest triopoly in sport.
He has found virtue in familiarity, ditching the experiments with celebrity coaches — Becker and Andre Agassi have both come and gone — in favour of a reunion with Marian Vajda, his former trainer, and Gebhard Phil-Gritsch, his fitness expert. “I love these guys,” he said last night. In some ways, Djokovic has not so much rebounded from the brink as come full circle, ditching the high-profile entourage and embracing his most trusted lieutenants anew.