‘Pressure is privilege’ for history-chasing Djokovic; Svitolina and Belinda enter semis
TOKYO: Novak Djokovic said “pressure is a privilege” ater keeping his Golden Slam bid intact at the Tokyo Olympics, where the decision of superstar gymnast Simone Biles to withdraw from two events over mental health concerns has put the spotlight on athletes’ wellbeing.
World number one Djokovic is trying to become the first man to win all four Grand Slams and Olympic gold in the same year, and emulate the feat achieved by Steffi Graf in 1988.
The Serb is thriving on the Olympic experience, mingling and posing for pictures with athletes from all walks of life in the village, cuting an extremely relaxed figure as he goes in search of history.
“Pressure is a privilege. Without pressure there is no professional sport,” said Djokovic ater his 6-3, 6-1 win over Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the third round on Wednesday.
He set up a quarter-final with Japan’s Kei Nishikori as gold medal rival Daniil Medvedev struggled with the heat, even asking the chair umpire who would be responsible if he died. Nishikori, the 2016 bronze medallist, beat Ilya Ivashka of Belarus 7-6 (9/7), 6-0, while fourth seed Alexander Zverev and Frenchman Jeremy Chardy also progressed.
“If you are aiming to be at the top of the game, you beter start learning how to deal with pressure and how to cope with those moments.”
Djokovic was captured deep in conversation explaining to Turkey’s men’s and women’s volleyball teams how his mental approach was crucial to his longevity.
He also revealed players from the Serbian women’s basketball team, judokas and other athletes had quizzed him over his mental strength.
“On the court, but also off the court, all the expectations and all that buzz and all that noise... I’ve learned to develop a mechanism how to deal with it in such a way that it will not pose a distraction to me, it will not wear me down,” said Djokovic.
“I feel I have enough experience to know myself how to step on the court and play my best tennis.”
ITF DELAYS START AFTER MEDVEDEV SAYS HEAT COULD KILL HIM:
Medvedev stayed on course to meetdjokovicinthemen’sfinalastherussiansecond seed overcame Italy’s Fabio Fognini 6-2, 3-6, 6-2.
But the two-time Grand Slam runner-up again found the temperatures testing as the extreme weather policy was implemented, with the heat index topping out at 37 degrees Celsius (99 degrees Fahrenheit).
“Even from the first set I didn’t feel good enough with my breathing. I felt like my diaphragm was blocked, I couldn’t breathe properly,” said Medvedev, who took a medical timeout and received two visits from the trainer.
Asked by the umpire if he was OK during the second set, the Russian replied: “I can finish the match, but I can die. If I die, are you going to be responsible?”
The International Tennis Federation (ITF) has said that the tennis fixtures at the Ariake Tennis Park in the Tokyo Olympics will start at 3pm Japan Standard Time from Thursday. The decision was taken ater requests from players who had struggled to play in hot and humid conditions.
World No. 6 Elina Svitolina of Ukraine -- the highest-ranked player let in the Tokyo Olympic Games draw ater Ashleigh Barty, Naomi Osaka and Aryna Sabalenka made early exits -- overcame Camila Giorgi of Italy, 6-4, 6-4, to book a semifinal spot on Wednesday and guarantee herself an opportunity to play for a medal.
In the semi-finals, Svitolina will face Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic. The world No.42 moved past 29th-ranked Paula Badosa when the Spaniard retired ater Marketa won the first set 6-3.
No.9 seed Belinda Bencic of Switzerland also booked a spot in the semifinals, as she outlasted No.13 seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of ROC, 6-0, 3-6, 6-3 in their quarterfinal clash.
Svitolina had notched one of the best wins of her career at the previous Olympics, when she defeated defending gold medallist Serena Williams at 2016 Rio en route to a quarterfinal finish. Elina is now one round further in Tokyo ater her hour-and-a-half victory over 61st-ranked Camila.
Svitolina converted four of her 11 break points to stop the power-hiting Camila, who had defeated No.5 seed and Wimbledon finalist Karolina Pliskova of the Czeck Republic in the Round of 16.