Djokovic is not getting ahead of himself in bid for a Golden Slam
Novak Djokovic struck a confident tone ahead of his bid for a first Olympic gold medal in Tokyo, but insisted he will put thoughts of more history to one side – for now.
Theworldnumberonetravelled to Japan just over a week after defeating Matteo Berrettini at Wimbledon to become the first man in more than 50 years to win the opening three grand slam tournaments in a year.
Now he is targeting the fourth part of a quintuple that would make him the first man in history to win a Golden Slam of all four major titles andOlympicsinglesgoldinthe same season.
Speaking at a press conference, Djokovic said: “Representing your country, being part of the team, is something that I treasure, something that encourages me and gives me a lot of confidence, a lot of great energy.
“Even though I’m by myself onatenniscourt,Istillfeelthis teamspiritisthereandthesupport of team-mates and everyone involved in the Serbian team. That gives you wings to perform your best and try to reach the biggest heights.
“I feel great. Physically, mentally, I’m ready to perform at my best. I’ve had arguably the best grand slam season in my sport so far, winning three out of three grand slams, so I could not have a better preparation and better lead-up to theOlympicGames.Hopefully I can have another great tournament.”
The only Olympic medal in Djokovic’s collection so far is a bronze from Beijing in 2008, with the 34-year-old losing to Juan Martin Del Potro in both London and Rio.
He joked he was glad the Argentinian, who is working his way back from more knee surgery, is not in Tokyo but he knows his biggest obstacles may well be his own nerves, with the stakes so high, and
the hot and humid conditions that have proved a problem in the past.
“It’s still a very long way to a potential achievement, historic achievement,” said Djokovic, who faces Bolivia’s Hugo Dellien in the first round. “I put myself in a very good position but I will take things very slowlyandcautiouslyandfocus only on the next challenge.
“This is an approach I really
need to have because in the past I wasn’t probably fully experiencing that approach and that has backfired on me. I startedtofeeltherewerealotof distractions around that were influencing my performance.
“I know there is a lot of thingsontheline,Iknowthere is history on the line, I’m privileged and motivated to be in this position. I’ve worked very hard to be there, with my team of course, but let’s talk about historyifeverythinggoesgreat here.”
SteffiGrafistheonlyplayer ever to have achieved a Golden Slam, winning gold in Seoul in 1988, and Djokovic said: “I worked with her husband, AndreAgassi,afewyearsagoandI alsohadachancetospendalittle bit of time with Steffi.
“I have the utmost respect and admiration for Steffi and everything she has achieved in her career and the mark that she left in our sport.
“WhenIwasthinkingabout the ultimate achievement that she had, I did not think that would be, I don’t want to say achievable, but there’s a slim chance that someone could make it again. Right now it seems more and more realistic. Of course that’s one of the goals and dreams.”