The U.S. Open began yesterday, and the biggest attraction this year is whether Djokovic can win the title, which has at least three major implications: first, to determine whether the annual Grand Slam can be achieved, which only Rodrawall did in 1969 and German Empress Graf in 1988 since the Open Era; second, to decide whether to surpass Federer Nadal with 21 Grand Slam titles; third, to decide whether it can lock in the year-end world number one in advance, thus surpassing Sampras with 7 year-end world number ones.
In my August 27 article, I counted Hantu chuva, Becker, Thiem, Russefsky, and Henman's analysis and prediction of whether Djokovic could win the US Open, and all five of them unanimously believed that Djokovic could win the US Open, and Rusedowski and Henman believed that Djokovic would face greater pressure, focusing on guarding against the possible impact of Zverev and Medvedev.
Recently, Rodraver, Stan Smith, Wieland and other tennis stars have also expressed their views on Djokovic's US Open prospects. Here are the main points.
Rodrall: Things are always going to go wrong, and Djokovic shouldn't have too much baggage
Australian tennis legend Rodrawall has won the Annual Grand Slam twice, once in 1962, before the Open era, and once in 1969, after the Open era. Commenting on Djokovic's performance this year, Rodrawall said he was looking forward to Novak joining the Annual Grand Slam club and pointed out problems that might be encountered.
Rodravol said: "In my time, I never said I had to play in a Grand Slam, I had to win the Annual Grand Slam, but now the situation has completely changed and that puts pressure on me. And Djokovic, I think he was too much expectant of it when he talked about it, it might be bad for him. ”
Indeed, as Rodraver said, the world more than 50 years ago was very different from what it is now. "He knew all the players, all the players knew him," and I wasn't in that situation at the time... I think the pressure comes not only from his opponents, but also from Djokovic himself. In addition, his body may also have accidents, and many things can go wrong. Rodrawall concluded.
Stan Smith: The mental quality of composure is a powerful weapon for Djokovic to win
Tennis Hall of Famer Stan Smith, who has won 2 Grand Slam titles and whose Adidas little white shoes named after him have been worldwide and best-selling for decades, are a bit of a tennis star whose views are a bit counter to Rodrawall,d'Ivoire, who believes Djokovic won't panic or lose confidence because "things get bad."
"It's really hard to win the Grand Slam of the Year, but Djokovic is a very popular guy and he's going to work on it. He's not saying ambiguous things like 'Okay, maybe...' – he's really committed to doing that. Unless he's injured, he's the biggest favorite to win the title. The former US Open and Wimbledon champion said.
"Nadal and Federer certainly have the ability to win the Annual Grand Slam, and they've also won three Grand Slams in a year, but neither of them has done the Annual Grand Slam, and I'm surprised.
"The hard court is probably Djokovic's favourite, so to beat him you have to play really well. Having said that, he played several bad sets at the French Open, he played very badly in the first two sets against Tsitsipas in the final, but then played well.
"I don't know what that was, but he was really bad at the time and I thought he was finished. The fact that he quickly regained form and played excellent tennis shows that he is confident that if things go bad, a lot of people will panic, but Djokovic won't. ”
Speaking about specific tennis techniques, Smith said Djokovic's performance at Wimbledon was impressive, and he was more confident in his netting, which showed that he had become more and more comprehensive.
Smith also added that he thinks Djokovic's best batting action is a double back, "I was a little surprised when I saw his backhand hitting mistakes because he usually maintains a good balance, in Wimbledon finals he may have 15 physical out of balance and the rest of the time he is in balance, when he is in balance, he doesn't have mistakes, even if there are mistakes, it's not too much." ”
Verland: Djokovic will definitely win 21 Grand Slams
Former world no. 1 and seven-time Grand Slam champion Wieland believes Djokovic's determination and motivation will allow him to accomplish the feat, but he also believes djokovic may never win a Grand Slam again.
"The chance of winning the annual Grand Slam if possible makes him more determined and hardworking, and I wouldn't be surprised if he won the U.S. Open and then didn't win another Grand Slam." Wieland said.
What Wieland means by this is that he thinks it's hard for Djokovic to stay ahead of the curve for too long because these young players are physically great, they generally have strong serves, they play aggressively, they're physically stronger, and while their mobility isn't great and their psychology isn't that strong, it helps to boost their mental quality and confidence as they break into Grand Slam finals more and more frequently.
"I think what's interesting for Novak is that red clay and grass will be his two easiest venues, while hardfield venues are everyone's favourite. There are very few players who can perform well on both clay and grass. I think Novak will win another Grand Slam, that's for sure, but I'm not sure when. ”
Speaking about the current US Open, Wieland analyzed: "The 21 Grand Slam goal is a heavy burden, the annual Grand Slam is a pleasant trip for him, this year is his best chance to achieve this goal, and he may never find such a good opportunity in the future." That's why I expect him to win the US Open. ”
Djokovic lost successively to Zverev and Busta at the Tokyo Olympics, which Wieland believes gives the other players extra motivation and hope.
"I don't think what happened at the Olympics will have an impact on Djokovic, but it will affect the other players. They may cheer when they see Busta defeat Djokovic because Busta doesn't have weapons like Zverev or Medvedev. Busta didn't have a strong serve or a very prominent weapon, but he proved in Tokyo that he could still beat Djokovic. Wieland said.
De talks about himself: Aim to win
At a U.S. Open press conference on Friday, Djokovic said winning the annual Grand Slam would be a new highlight of his career. To a reporter's question about whether he could win the US Open, Djokovic replied: "I think it's a simple question — yes, it will. ”
Asked if winning all four Grand Slams in 2021 would be his biggest career achievement, he said: "Obviously, I know how big a chance there is in New York that I've been playing well over the years. This is probably the most interesting tennis court we have ever had. The crowd will return to the stadium. I can't wait. Honestly, I'm very motivated to play the best tennis I can. But I have to try to live in the moment, and in a way I have a guiding light, a dream of winning a Grand Slam here, which will obviously help me complete the annual Grand Slam. There is no doubt that I was greatly inspired and inspired. ”
Tennis journalist Chris Mckendry broke the news on her personal social media that she asked Djokovic how many he would choose if he won the US Open 1-10. Djokovic replied, "11, wait, it should be 21 (Grand Slams)." ”
Another netizen quipped that the only person who can beat Djokovic at the US Open is the line review, and this year the US Open will fully use electronic line review instead of manual line review.
(Source: Tennis House Author: Yun Cirrus Yunshu)
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