Novak Djokovic Backed To Win 'At Least One' Grand Slam By Naomi Osaka's Coach
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Patrick Mouratoglou thinks Novak Djokovic will likely win at least one major title if the former ATP world No. 1 is fully motivated.
Djokovic received a challenging opening round in the Australian Open draw. He will face the 19-year-old Nishesh Basavareddy, who reached the semifinal of the ASB Classic as a qualifier ahead of the season's opening Grand Slam.
While Basavareddy could challenge Djokovic, the Serbian received the ideal preparation since arriving in Melbourne. He defeated Carlos Alcaraz 7-5 in a practice set reported to be of exceptional quality.
The 37-year-old's new coach, Andy Murray, started working with Djokovic at the Australian Open. They constantly communicated throughout the set against Alcaraz, discussing forehand grip and split step timing.
Djokovic also beat Alexander Zverev in an exhibition match during the Australian Open Fan Week. While victories before a tournament do not guarantee success, playing at a high level against players of Alcaraz and Zverev's quality is still a positive sign.
The Serbian seeks to win his first Grand Slam in over a year at the Australian Open after failing to secure a major title in 2024. That was the first time he had not obtained one of the four most significant tournaments on the tennis calendar since 2017.
Mouratoglou is a controversial figure. From 2012 until 2022, he enjoyed a very successful partnership with the legendary Serena Williams, helping the seven-time Wimbledon winner achieve numerous successes.
However, the Frenchman and his team gave Simona Halep the contaminated collagen that led to her doping nightmare and suspension. Mouratoglou also had a series of recent underwhelming spells with Holger Rune.
Those factors did not stop Naomi Osaka from appointing him as her coach. The Japanese star reached her first final since 2021 in just her second tournament working with Mouratoglou at the ASB Classic during the opening week of the new season.
Mouratoglou does an online series for Tennis Majors called The Eye of the Coach. In a recent episode, he described how Djokovic lacked motivation last season after surpassing his great rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
"In 2023, unbelievable year for Novak. Wins three Grand Slams, final of the fourth one. 2024, no Grand Slams, lot of bad losses, which is something very new for him. The main problem in 2024 for him was the motivation."
"With Rafa being out of the Tour, in many ways he won his fight against the two others(Nadal and Federer). He felt like: 'Oh finally I got it, I won the fight of all my career.' He fought within himself to find motivation and he couldn't find it except at the Olympics because that was the title he really needed."
Despite Djokovic's struggles with motivation in 2024, Mouratoglou thinks he seems more motivated this year and is confident about his chances of securing a major title in 2025.
"What I noticed already is what he says. And he talks about how big his motivation is. But he also said he took the decision to play much more. If you look at last year, you could feel he didn't feel like playing. He was only going for big tournaments, canceled a lot of tournaments."
"If his motivation is at the top, he can compete with the other two guys (Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner). I'm not saying that he has the same margin as before, for sure not because the two other guys progressed, and also others. If the motivation is really back, we have to count on him. I can't believe he's not going to win at least one this year."
