'Let's Not Get Ahead Of Ourselves': Djokovic Calms Expectations After Crushing Win
ATP
Novak Djokovic had no issues in his first match at the 2024 Monte-Carlo Masters, winning in two sets easily against Roman Safiullin.
The 36-year-old admitted in an interview ahead of the Monte-Carlo Masters that he doesn't have high expectations of the event. He likely treats it like a preparation event, which will get him closer to his imperative goals for Roland Garros and the Olympics.
Still, the last time he was on the court was a loss to a player ranked outside of the Top 100, and another bad loss would become maybe also a mental burden. He needed to win this match comfortably, and he did just that, keeping it two relatively short sets.
After the match, Djokovic admitted that he was content with his performance but pumped the brakes on some of the more sensationalized reporting.
"I like really the way I felt today on the court, the way I was striking the ball. I think the two, three weeks of training I had is paying off really, you know, good training block with Zimonjic and with the team."
"We put in a lot of hours into thinking about the game, the movement, and things that haven't really worked for me in the first couple tournaments of this year that I played. It's a great start. Let's not get ahead of ourselves and put the hopes too high. It's only one match, but the way I felt, I'm really pleased."
Djokovic practiced at home before coming to Monaco, and obviously, it paid off. It's something people have warned about, the losses are not going to discourage Djokovic.
He's just going to go back to the drawing board and figure out what needs to change and then work on that. Skipping the Miami Open was nothing but him opting to practice instead of playing because the loss to Luca Nardi showed him he was not ready yet.
