The latest breakout star on the ATP Tour, Jakub Mensik, learned from the best as he looked up to Novak Djokovic growing up.
Mensik is one of those young and up-and-coming tennis players who grew up with the Big Three playing in their prime. His favorite player out of the three is Djokovic, who has 24 major titles.
It's no wonder that Djokovic was the 18-year-old's pick, as he dominated when the Czech player was starting to really get into the sport. Mensik is now among professional, and he still looks up to Djokovic for inspiration.
For him, he's the greatest tennis player of all time; he's his inspiration and just somebody who is helping him chase his dream. We've heard many times how great Djokovic is with young players, and Mensik is just one of them.
"He's the best player in the history, so when I started to play tennis, you know, I saw on the television Top 4, Big 4, you know, Andy, Roger, Rafa, Novak, and Novak was, you know, one of my favorites. So because of him I started to play tennis. That's why he's my idol."
Speaking after his semi-final win over Gael Monfils in Doha, Mensik admitted that he's in touch with his idol often after meeting two years ago.
"Last year or two years ago, I had the opportunity to play against him in Montenegro and Belgrade, so after that, we stayed in contact. You know, we are reaching each other in the tournaments in Australia and New York last year, Davis Cup, what else. We talked to each other, you know, what's new, and we're like friends."
The way Mensik's career has been trending, he might soon get a chance to place his idol in a proper ATP match. But for now, he'll worry about doing well in his first-ever Tour-level final at the 2024 Qatar Open in Doha.
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