Only 12 months ago things were looking a lot different for Novak Djokovic on the ATP Tour.
Returning to action following an injury-related hiatus, the Serbian entered the 2018 BNP Paribas Open with huge doubts looming over his head. Undergoing a small medical procedure on his elbow a month before. In his opening match, he suffered a shock loss to world No.109 Taro Daniel. To put that lose into perspective, it was only the fifth time he had lost to a player ranked outside of the top 100 in the past decade.
“I definitely wasn’t ready to compete at this level last year,” AFP news quoted Djokovic as saying on Thursday.
“I was kind of convincing myself that I was, but I truly wasn’t.
“I know most of my team members at the time were against me playing in Indian Wells and Miami because it was too early after the surgery.”
Despite the misfortunes, Djokovic managed to regain his form and momentum on the tour. Over the past nine months he has staged a staggering comeback that has consisted of the Serbian claiming three consecutive grand slam titles, alongside two Masters 1000 trophies. During that period he has featured in the final of nine out of the 10 tournaments he has played in. Winning five titles in total.
“I could have, should have made a different decision, but I believe it also taught me some valuable lessons that helped me to create amazing results in the next seven, eight months and get from 22 in the world to No. 1 in the world in less than six months.” He reflected.
Unsurprisingly the 31-year-old will be the man to beat In Indian Wells this year. At stake is a sixth title at the tournament, which would make him the most decorated male player of all time in Indian Wells. A record he currently shares with rival Roger Federer. Victory would also reward Djokovic his 33rd Masters title, which would tie him with Rafael Nadal on the all-time list.
“It’s been a while since I played my last match and I’m really looking forward to getting back on the court.” Djokovic said during an interview with atptour.com.
“I had time to reflect on Australia. Obviously I had a lot of positives to carry into the rest of the season. I’ve worked hard for more than three weeks getting my body, mind and emotions into the right shape to perform in one of the biggest tournaments in the world.” He added.
Djokovic will take on qualifier Bjorn Fratangelo in his opening match on Saturday. The two players also locked horns at the same tournament three years ago. On that occasion, Djokovic battled back from a set down to prevail.
