Novak Djokovic is widely considered the greatest tennis player ever, but Patrick Mouratoglou thinks the Serbian could have achieved even more if he had made one change to his game.
Mouratoglou has worked with great players during his time as a coach. His most notable stint was with Serena Williams from 2012 until 2022, winning several Grand Slams and other tournaments with the legendary American.
Although coaching the woman many consider the best female player ever might not seem like a hard job, Williams had not won a Grand Slam title in two years before Mouratoglou joined her team, but she quickly won Wimbledon after his arrival.
Mouratoglou then had a controversial spell with Simona Halep. The Romanian was banned for nine months (reduced from four years upon appeal) after testing positive for a banned substance.
The French coach admitted he and his team gave Halep the collagen that led to her suspension, but the 54-year-old did not face any consequences for his poor decision-making and was allowed to continue coaching on the ATP and WTA Tours.
Holger Rune worked with Mouratoglou for three brief periods, splitting with him most recently at the end of July. Rune has returned to Lars Christensen for the third time, continuing his coaching chaos.
After splitting with Wim Fissette for the second time, Osaka hired Mouratoglou ahead of the Asian swing on the WTA Tour. She won three matches in her first tournament with the Frenchman at the China Open in Beijing.
However, their partnership has been halted after Osaka ended her season early due to a back injury she sustained in Beijing against Coco Gauff. As a result, the Japanese star will miss the Billie Jean King Cup Finals.
Despite the controversy surrounding his time with Halep and splitting with Rune three times, Mouratoglou is undoubtedly an experienced coach who can provide insights into players' styles.
Speaking to Talking Tennis, Mouratoglou acknowledged that Djokovic is the greatest player ever but also thinks he could have achieved even more by being more aggressive during the rallies.
"What I think he could have done better, which is tough to say because he’s the greatest of all time, I feel sometimes he’s not aggressive enough in his game. He’s probably the guy who covered the court in the best possible way, not only because of his movement but also because of the fact that moving at a very high pace to the sides, he was able to counterpunch."
"He’s the biggest counterpuncher I think of all times. But I think even for guys like him, counterpunchers, it’s important to also lead the rallies as much as you can. And I think when he moves forward, when he takes the ball a bit earlier, steps inside the court every time in can — then I think he’s almost unplayable."
The thought of Djokovic being even better than he has been is quite scary. If Mouratoglou is correct, his rivals will be relieved that the 24-time Grand Slam champion was not always as aggressive as he should have been in the rallies.