A former rival of Novak Djokovic believes his dominance on the Tour this season will not be repeated next year because he is becoming ‘more fragile.’
Thomas Berdych has warned that Djokovic could be in for a tougher time over the coming months as he seeks to break more records in the sport. This year Djokovic won three out of the four Grand Slam tournaments to bring his overall tally to 20 which places him on level footing with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. Outside of the slams he also won titles in his native Belgrade and the Paris Masters. Djokovic achieved a win-loss of 55-7 this year on the ATP Tour.
However, 36-year-old Berdych believes the tides could be turning as he predicts that the Serbian will face more challenges in the major tournaments. At the US Open he fell to Daniil Medvedev in straight sets.
“He’s going to have more of a difficult time next year, definitely. I’m not saying he has no chance of winning a Slam – he has a pretty good chance – but I think he’s going to have to avoid a tough match which will drain him over five sets because it’s two weeks, seven matches, and you need to stay healthy,” Sky Sports quoted Berdych as saying.
Berdych has played Djokovic 28 times during his career on the Tour between 2008-2017 but only won three of their encounters. Although one of those wins was during the 2017 Wimbledon Championships where Djokovic retired from their match in the second set.
“He’s been so strong where nothing could break him, which is why he has been dominating, but I think now he’s getting a little bit more fragile,” he continued. “Next season is going to be interesting. I think he’s got the chance of winning at least one Grand Slam next year.”
The players who have beaten Djokovic in 2021 are Dan Evans, Aslan Karatsev, Nadal, Alexander Zverev, Pablo Carreno Busta and Medvedev. Out of those six, Zverev is the only player to have scored multiple wins.
As for the next generation taking over from the Big Three, Berdych says he is impressed by another name on the men’s Tour.
“Federer, Nadal and Djokovic have been around for a really, really long time and it shows just what a great generation of tennis it has been,” he said.
“We could now expect more unpredictable results.
“I really like the way Stefanos Tsitsipas plays because he plays very aggressive and creative on court. The second half of his season has been a bit flat though.”
Berdych has been ranked as high as fourth in the world and won 13 ATP titles during his career. He retired from the sport in 2019.
