WHY I HATE NOVAK DJOKOVIC!

Written by: Staff on 27th May 2016

French Open tennis tournament at Roland Garros

WHY I HATE NOVAK DJOKOVIC!

epa05330394 Novak Djokovic of Serbia in action against Steve Darcis of Belgium during their men's single second round match at the French Open tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, 26 May 2016.??? EPA/ROBERT GHEMENT |

By Craig Cignarelli

With Rafa and Roger out, Novak’s path to the French Open title and the career grand slam just became the the Red Sea. That is not to say the conclusion is foregone, but rather, that some fairly large obstacles have just parted in front of the guy who was likely to win anyway. Sure, there are some young guns with a shot – Thiem, Kyrgios – and a few of the tweener centurions – Raonic, Nishikori. Too, there’s Murray, who, if he can quell the internal tempest might give Djoker a run for La Coupe des Mousquetaires. Chances are though, the world’s number one will be hoisting silver on Sunday in Paris.

Having looked at the statistics, Djokovic is far ahead in many categories this year. He wins 73% of his first serve points and 55% of his own second serve points. He holds serve 86% of the time and his ground game is better fortified than Donald Trump’s hair. His backhand down the line beats all inside-out forehand players and his Gumby-esque flexibility is supple enough to make Mary Lou Retton lift an eyebrow. All of these things aid him in his quest to be the world’s best tennis player. None of these things, however, get to why I hate him.

On most days, I stand beside a three-hundred ball basket providing technical and strategic instruction to various levels of players. Over the course of a workday, I might hit a couple hundred serves so players can work on their returns. By Friday, there’s an unmistakeable soreness, the kind that you just know is going to require a scalpel and great health insurance post-fifty. As of a few years ago though, things changed.

See, I grew up watching Connors, and then hitting against Agassi. These guys were beasts on the return, punishing you for not making your first serve. For many, it made life miserable. You had to hit within four inches of the service box lines to gain an advantage. But, if you could do it, you could gain an advantage (ask Sampras).

As I went from one side of the teaching basket to the other, Novak came along and changed everything. This guy makes the service box look like a batting tee. Even if the server hits the lines, Djokovic returns it within four feet of the baseline and neutralizes the point. He is winning an unheard of 34% of first serve return points and 55% of second serve return points. He’s winning 32% of his return games – that means he is going to break you twice per set! He is winning 42% of his return points, which means he’s getting to the point where the other top players in the world barely have an advantage even when they are serving.

Novak Djokovic of Serbia in action against Steve Darcis of Belgium during their men’s single second round match at the French Open tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, 26 May 2016.??? EPA/ROBERT GHEMENT

Up close, like I was in Madrid, you can see how demoralizing it is for guys like Murray, Nadal, Federer and Nishikori. They hit a perfectly placed serve, one which would put them on offense against anyone else in the world, and suddenly they are backing up trying to defend. They get these awkward expressions, like someone passed gas in an elevator and the same sort of frustration sets in – there is no way out of this!

Alas, this brings me to why I hate Novak Djokovic. As I stand here beneath the midday sun watching D-1 male tennis players approach me for summer training, I know I will have to hit them thousands of serves. I know the pain and suffering my shoulder will feel at 8pm and how the following morning, I’ll have trouble lifting my arm to brush my teeth before heading out to pound out more 125mph serves from the service line. I know these kids have to learn to return better than Novak if they are going to make it on tour, and I know it takes thousands of practice repetitions to get the feel of returning every ball within four feet of the baseline. And that is why I hate Novak Djokovic. He is the guy who has raised the bar so high that I am going to be in pain for the rest of my coaching career. The next time I stand next to Novak at a Grand Slam, I am going to ask him for some pain reliever and a check to cover my shoulder surgery. Man, I hate that guy.

Topics: 2016 French Open, Craig Cignarelli, French Open Tennis, Novak Djokovic, RG16, Roland Garros, Sports, Tennis News