Jelena Janković, said she has been impressed by Djokovic’s ability to keep his form.
“A lot of players can play well certain parts of the season, but they cannot play so consistently well the whole year,” she noted. “He only lost one match since January, so that shows how impressive his game and mentality has been.”
“The most important thing, I think, is that he’s mentally really, really strong, and I think he breaks down a lot of other players with, you know, his toughness.”
She added other tennis pros are watching Djokovic to learn how to play his game, but no one has been able to replicate it.
“It’s easier to say and speak, but it’s tougher to do it, you know, in practice,” she said. “It’s just theory.”
She said she’s mixing up her routines and doing different exercises to keep her motivated as she works to improve her game.
“If you love pizza, but if you eat it every day, you’re eventually going to get sick of it,” she opined.
“I think you have to kind of mix it up and find some balance between your sport and some other things that you like to do and then stay happy.”
“I play better when I’m happy off the court, as well,” she added. “When I go on the court, I go with a smile on my face and I’m happy to be hitting balls and working on my tennis game.”
Asked to compare her present self to when she was No. 1, Janković said she moved better then, but is serving better now. Currently ranked 14th, she conceded she does not like practicing and would rather just compete and, at times, has been lazy.
But the 2008 U.S. Open finalist now is reinvigorated. Like her countryman, she wants more.
“I still have a lot of things to prove – not just to other people, but to myself,” she said. “That’s why I play this game. I still enjoy it.”
“I really am working hard again,” she said. “And I’m willing to do whatever it takes to come back to the top again.”
