Novak Djokovic would probably hate nothing more than to win a silver medal at this year's Paris Olympics. Still, according to former ATP player Alex Corretja, it would be a good result.
It is important to note that Corretja is Spanish and, as such, probably has a vested interest in Carlos Alcaraz winning the gold medal at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. He would probably openly say so, but as a tennis analyst, the Spaniard was giving a professional opinion.
In the context of where Djokovic was two months ago, the fact that he reached back-to-back Wimbledon and Olympics finals is already a great achievement. Only two months ago, he had withdrawn from the Roland Garros due to a knee injury, which ultimately required surgery.
That was a tough spot for the Serbian, who wasn't sure how the next weeks would look. He made a super quick recovery, returning to Wimbledon and making the final, but ultimately, he couldn't win the trophy as he lost to Alcaraz.
He will face the Spaniard in the Olympics final as well, and according to former player and current analyst Corretja, Djokovic will be ready. The Spaniard thinks it will be competitive because the 24-time major winner can never be counted out.
He has played many of these matches and knows how to win them. If he doesn't, Corretja still believes a silver medal is a fair result for him, given the circumstances and his opponent.
"For Novak, we could see how much it meant to him to get to the final, the way he lay down on the court after his win. He will be ready. In this best of three, he is moving much better than he was at Wimbledon a few weeks ago. He knows how to deal with pressure."
"I think for him, winning at least the silver is a good achievement but that cannot be the headline. He looks for gold. He is gold himself. He is platinum. Anything less than gold is less than he expects."
In a vacuum, it truly would be a great result, given everything that happened, but for Djokovic, gold is the only medal he is looking for. Everything else would technically be a failure, no matter what the context is.
It should be a big match for Djokovic because he has won many trophies in his career, but he's never won the gold medal, which he certainly wants. Even so, he will enter that match as an underdog due to how well Alcaraz has played in recent weeks.
If he does manage to win the match, it would certainly be one of the most iconic achievements of his tennis career. It would also be the cherry on top of what is ultimately the greatest tennis career we have ever seen.
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