'Motivation Is Gone': Djokovic Given Brutal Assessment After Another Shock Loss
NewsMonday, 28 April 2025 at 19:07
Novak Djokovic lost three matches in a row once again this year, and that prompted a very honest assessment of his current situation, which came from the former WTA doubles World No. 1, Rennae Stubbs.
It's not a secret that Djokovic can't win matches as easily as he once did. He has already lost seven matches this year, and it's only April. For comparison, he never lost more than seven matches during the whole season in 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023.
Djokovic's most recent lost came at the Madrid Open, where he lost to Matteo Arnaldi in his opening match. While the Italian player played well, the 24-time Grand Slam champion also played way under his usual level.
Djokovic made 32 unforced errors during the match, while being able to produce only 21 winners. On the other hand, his opponent produced the same number of winners while committing only 18 unforced errors.
After the 37-year-old's loss, Rennae Stubbs took to X (formerly Twitter) to express her opinions, saying that she thinks Djokovic has already "lost his aura."
"The worry index continues for Novak, as I pointed out on my latest podcast. He’s making way too many unforced errors (32 today) and not locking down in the biggest moments. Guys are not intimidated anymore because of that, and that's the biggest key for these players, they see/feel it."
"When you lose your aura, and in turn are not locking down and making these guys suffer, like double-faulting two times in a row to drop serve in the first set. You would never see that from Nole at his best. How do you get that confidence back? You have to win and I worry the motivation is gone."
Stubbs thinks that Djokovic lost his motivation, and on top of that, she also thinks that he "hit a wall." The Serbian player is not the youngest anymore, and sooner or later, that point will come.
"At some point in an athlete’s professional life, you hit a wall, age, stress, travel, family life, packing bags, flights, customs, hours on court, in the gym, it gets harder and harder. Your motivation starts to wane, and you stop wanting to push through those tough barriers to get the results."
"Do I think he can still win a slam? Of course! He’s the greatest player of all time, but it’s getting harder and harder every week because I don’t care who you are, you can’t buy confidence! You have to earn it and currently his confidence is getting chipped away at more and more."
Stubbs also didn't forget to credit Djokovic's opponent. Arnaldi played a great match, for which he deserved recognition.
"Also! Arnaldi played awesome!!! But looking at the match with a fine-tooth comb, the way Arnaldi handled the tough moments, like down 0-40 on serve after breaking in the second, he locked down and was the better player, and that's where the shift has happened. It’s not Novak anymore."
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