Novak Djokovic is probably the biggest supporter of wheelchair tennis on the ATP Tour and he showed it once again at the 2022 Tel Aviv Open.
The 21-time Grand Slam champion appeared on a tennis court with many legends of the game, playing on a wheelchair. Ahead of his 2022 Tel Aviv Open final against Marin Cilic, the Serbian held another practice session. This time, Novak Djokovic practiced with Elay Chayot, who was really emotional about meeting him.
After their quick practice session, the Israeli player shared his thoughts on the social media, writing: "In two days, I got to know a new friend. And not just any new friend, but one of the greatest tennis players in history and one of the leading athletes in the world today.Beyond being a great athlete, Novak Djokovic is an amazing human being."
"After our meeting on Thursday, Novak saw me yesterday at the end of his match and suggested that we play tennis together. Novak asked if we had another wheelchair and after I said "for sure!", he asked me to bring it, he sat on it and that's how we played tennis together, with each of us sitting on a chair on a different side of the court: me, and the number 1 tennis player in the world."
"Novak asked me about the Paralympic sport in Israel, was very interested in me and my friends in the Israeli tennis industry and told me how much he enjoyed it here. In the evening I asked myself if it was a dream, if everything I went through in those two days really happened. I am the happiest person to had the privilege of getting to know Novak up close."
It seems that the practice helped also the 21-time Grand Slam champion, who then defeated Marin Cilic in two sets to win the 2022 Tel Aviv Open and he was also happy with the week after the final match, when he said:
“My approach is to win tournaments wherever I am and I’m glad that I have a team of people around me that makes sure that I am in the best shape in order to be a contender to win titles,” Djokovic said. “That’s why I came to Israel, was to try to win the title. First time playing here [since a] Davis Cup tie more than 15 years ago, so it was a really amazing experience.”
“I played some very good tennis, I think. I [didn’t] drop a set the entire week,” Djokovic said. “I hadn’t played a tournament in three months, so it was really extra motivation for me to really do well, particularly because people have been so friendly and so supportive of me throughout the week. I’m taking some great confidence into next week as well.”
"Just everything really that we experienced this week was positive. The way people treated us when we landed in Israel all the way to the last moments now of our stay here has been truly wonderful and I am very grateful, because it was more than a tournament for me," Djokovic said.
"It was great connections that we established with people, all of us in the team, that we will cherish and will give us positive emotions for what’s coming up."
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