Ten months after clinching his maiden French Open title, Novak Djokovic is hoping to revive his game at a place that he calls home.
This week will see the Serbian play in Monte-Carlo for the 11th time in his career. It is in some way a home tournament for the world No.2, who resides in Monte-Carlo and even has his own restaurant there. A two-time champion in the event, he is hoping to thrive in the familiar surroundings.
“It’s great to be in a place where I spend the most time when I’m not travelling. This is where I call home and where my training camp is, so I spend a lot of time on these courts,” Djokovic told atpworldtour.com. “It’s just very comfortable here. I sleep in my own bed. The family, friends and food that I like and are part of my daily routine are here. It’s a very special week for me and I’ve had that feeling for many years.”
Ten months have passed since his maiden triumph at the French Open. Since then, Djokovic has endured an emotional roller coaster on the tour. Setbacks include the loss of his No.1 ranking, motivational issues and injury. On the other hand, he has also managed to win two titles within this period. No longer the dominant figure he once was on the tour, the world No.2 is hoping his return to the clay will spark a new beginning.
“I know that the last ten months since Roland Garros has happened because of certain things and I know that I probably haven’t taken that larger perspective of seeing things and what I have achieved,” Djokovic said.
“To be honest, I haven’t really listened to my body and my mind. I’m hoping this can be the right place to have a new beginning, a new start to the season.”
In recent weeks Djokovic’s struggle on the tour has been a physical one due to a troublesome elbow injury. He returned to action earlier this month at the Davis Cup, when he enjoyed a straight sets win over Spain’s Albert Ramos-Vinolas. It was an encouraging sign for the Djokovic, who admits was unsure of how his body would cope with the transition of surfaces.
“The elbow is fine now. I’ve been training for the past couple of weeks, playing Davis Cup and making the transition to clay that’s very demanding for the body. I was skeptical of how my elbow would react to the heavy balls on clay, but it’s been good so far,” he explained.
“I’ve paid a lot of attention to recovery since having to miss Miami and am now in shape to compete.”
Chasing after his second title of the season, Djokovic will begin his Monte Carlo offensive in the second round against France’s Gilles Simon.
