Novak Djokovic's coach, Goran Ivanisevic, has lifted the lid on his working relationship with the 24-time Grand Slam champion, joking that he's always been the fall guy when things go wrong.
Djokovic and Ivanisevic began their alliance in the middle of 2019, with the Croat revealing at the time, it was an unexpected call. His guidance and influence over Djokovic at this stage of his career is largely understated.
Djokovic received massive backlash for appointing Ivanisevic in the early days of their partnership, majorly from Serbian newspapers, for reasons unrelated to tennis.
But as success flowed, the criticism vanished. Ivanisevic oversaw the eighth Grand Slam win in Djokovic'c box at last month's US Open, where his charge defeated Daniil Medvedev in the final.
It was the 24th major title of an illustrious career, a feat Ivanisevic called "one of the biggest achievements in sports" in a press conference in New York. The one-time Wimbledon winner relishes the role of coaching an all-time great, and has revealed that they have had a difference of opinion, but adds that it is "good to argue".
Ivanisevic also jokingly stated that even though the entire entourage has five members, he's always been the one to take the blame. Coaching the best tennis player of all time is a massive honor, but it comes with a great deal of pressure as only wins count, according to the Croat.
"There is stress. There are five of us in the team, but it's always my fault for everything. That's how it goes with the coach (laughing). On the court, people saw me as a savage or semi-savage, but I'm quite different off the court. I'm quite calm. No one believed that I could become a good coach. You need to know how to bury the ego. You don't matter anymore. The player is important."
"It is not easy to motivate him (Djokovic) because he has already won everything, but we have a way. Many times we don't agree, but it's a good thing to ‘argue; on the field. I love this job. This job can only be done if you love it and if you have the support of your family. If you don't know how to deal with stress, which is always present, you can't even do this job."
"I am lucky to be training a genius, the best tennis player of all time, and one of the best athletes ever. It's unfortunate that only wins count. The final is no good, it's like you didn't even come to the tournament."
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