Novak Djokovic is still playing with a knee brace, raising questions about whether the knee still bothers him during the 2024 US Open.
Ever since he underwent knee surgery almost three months ago, the 37-year-old Serbian has been playing with a knee brace. He's admitted to occasional discomfort with his knee, which shouldn't be too worrying as he underwent surgery.
The more important part is how much or if it prevents him from playing his best tennis. His Paris Olympics run would make it seem like it's very little because the Serbian was absolutely amazing in the French capital
The final against Carlos Alcaraz was peak Djokovic, given his current state, and it didn't seem to be a factor in that match. His US Open campaign started with a solid win against Radu Albot in straight sets.
Djokovic was largely unbothered by his opponent, but he didn't produce the cleanest match. He had some issues, especially on his serve, which proved a struggle for much of the match.
In the post-match press conference, he also admitted that he was late on some shots but deemed the performance quite solid overall, which it was. Some might say it was more than solid because he won the match 6-2, 6-2, 6-4.
"I think it was a solid start. Look, I struggled with my serve and the rhythm on certain shots. Overall from the back of the court I thought I played pretty well."
"It's always challenging to start, particularly when you haven't played on this surface for five, six months and coming off an Olympic gold and playing on clay."
Djokovic opted against playing any preparation events ahead of the US Open, preferring to stay home and prepare there. This behavior is not uncommon, as the Serbian frequently used the first week of a Grand Slam to get into a rhythm.
He will also have to do that this year, so he's expecting some early struggles. The struggles against Albot were fairly mild, but he will practice in between matches to fine-tune his game.
"I haven't had any official matches before US Open. So I'm expecting to be probably challenged a little bit more in the opening rounds. Hopefully I can play better each day."
"The good thing about slams is you have a day between matches where you can train, where you can really work on things and perfect your game."
"That's what I need. That's what I feel like I need. So I'm going to hit the practice courts tomorrow and work on things that haven't really worked during the match and, yeah, keep striving to be better."
When it comes to the knee, he admitted that it felt fine. The brace was there simply as a safety net rather than a necessity, and so far, it brought him some good luck. He hopes that it will continue.
"The knee is fine really. I haven't had any issues throughout the entire Olympic tournament and here first round. Knock on wood, it's all good."
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