Two members of Rafael Nadal’s team have implied a recent statement said by one of Novak Djokovic’s coaches placed too much pressure on him ahead of the French Open final.
Goran Ivanisevic spoke with Croatian broadcaster Hrvatska radiotelevizija (HRT) last week in which he labelled Djokovic as the overwhelming favourite heading into the French Open final after saying ‘Nadal has no chance under these conditions.’ He was alluding to the cooler temperature due to the time of the year the tournament was taking place. However, the prediction turned out to be completely incorrect with the Spaniard prevailing 6-0, 6-2, 7-5, to win his 13th title at Roland Garros. Inflicting Djokovic with one of his heaviest ever losses in a grand slam final.
Ivanisevic’s comment has been partly criticised by Carlos Moya, who is one of Nadal’s coaches. Speaking to radio station Cadena SER, the 1998 French Open champion said he would have made no such comment about his player ahead of a Grand Slam final.
“I know Ivanisevic and I understand that it is the role he has to play. Nobody would have said anything similar from Rafa’s team, I think it is something that puts pressure on our player,” he said.
The radio station has also quoted Toni Nadal as giving the view that ‘he would not have done’ the same as what Ivanisevic did. Toni was the former coach of the world No.2 who first introduced him to the sport as a child. In an article written for El Pais on October 12th, he went on to criticise the player-turned-coach.
“Ivanisevic, in another of his great predictions, said that his player was fully prepared both tactically and mentally for this final. The reality is that this final showed that it wasn’t like that after all. It surprises me that a champion like him often falls into a sequence of negative gestures and messages,” he wrote.
Reflecting on his comment, Ivanisevic admits that he was being a bit too ‘ambitious’ with what he said. At the time Djokovic had a win-loss record of 37-1 on the Tour with his only loss being a disqualification from the US Open after accidentally hitting a lineswoman with a ball. He has already won five titles on the Tour this season, including the ATP Cup.
“I have honestly meant what I said, my right is to say what I think and believe in my player, I thought this was Novak’s year in Paris. Again, I was a bit ambitious saying Nadal did not stand a chance, but I favoured Novak at that moment. I always state my opinion directly, however, it did not turn out that way,” he told Sport Klub.
“In Melbourne I stated that the odds were 50-50 and Novak ended up destroying Rafa. It is always easy to play it safe and just say ‘we will see’ or ‘the winner is going to be the better player on the given day’,’ but I said what I felt.”
Djokovic has been working with Ivanisevic since summer 2019. Besides enjoying a successful career as a player, the Croat has also worked with the likes of Marin Cilic, Milos Raonic and Tomas Berdych.
Djokovic will return to action later this month at the Vienna Open in Austria but it is undecided if he will be accompanied by his Croatian mentor or Marian Vajda. Ivanisevic has confirmed that plans are being drawn up but a final decision is yet to be reached.
“We haven’t made a plan yet. Vienna we will play, and I don’t know what will happen with Paris and how much it pays to play because he doesn’t lose points,” Ivanisevic outlined.
“Marjan and I will share, we will agree, and Novak will surely rest this week and will fulfil some obligations towards sponsors. After that, preparations for Vienna and London begin.“
The Vienna Open will start on October 26th.