Novak Djokovic was by far the best player of the 2011 season, winning three Majors and five Masters 1000 tournaments. Novak outpaced all rivals, including world no. 2 Rafael Nadal, whom he has beaten in no fewer than six notable finals, including Wimbledon and the US Open.
Djokovic suffered a back injury at the US Open, struggling a bit in the title clash against Nadal, but still sealing the deal in four sets. The Serb did not play well for the rest of the year, winning six out of ten games to shut down his engines and recharge his batteries for 2012.
Both Novak and Rafa were tired at the ATP Finals, unable to get past the round-robin stage and fight for the title. Asked about his great rival and the tiredness that he mentioned a day before, Djokovic admitted that he fully understands Nadal.
The Serb revealed that he felt tired in the final stages of the season and that he lacked the freshness that he had in the previous nine or ten months. In his last competitive match of the season, Novak suffered his first loss to Janko Tipsarevic in four meetings against his good friend.
He does not. 1 of the world took the first set, but fell 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 in two hours and eight minutes to move even further away from the place in the semifinal. With that spot on his account, Novak had a chance to advance to the last four and face Roger Federer.
Still, Tomas Berdych beat David Ferrer to join the Spaniard in the semi-finals and leave the Serb empty-handed. Djokovic and Tipsarevic each won 84 points, with the older Serb playing better in crucial moments.
Nole is still on top
Interviewed by our colleagues from Tennis365 on the occasion of the release of his documentary where he revealed in particular that he had an indecent proposal from Donald Trump to challenge Serena Williams, John McEnroe returned to Novak Djokovic’s very special season and especially to his unconventional mind.
“Novak didn’t get the credit he deserves, he has class. I don’t agree with his decision not to get vaccinated, but I respect her. He is one of the fittest men in the world and everything he puts into his body, he watches closely.
It’s unfortunate that he got to this situation where he was the victim of a train accident. A total debacle. To the point that he was kicked out of Australia, are you kidding me? The way it all unfolded was just awful, so I respect him even more for getting over those things.
He has to be the mentally strongest player I have ever seen on a tennis court. (Rafael) Nadal is a beast of effort, but Djokovic is incredible mentally. What he is able to manage and still succeed at this extraordinary level.”
