Former World No. 1 and arguably one of the greatest men’s singles players, Novak Djokovic, and his wife, Jelena, were wonderstruck after witnessing American Ilia Malinin’s phenomenal free skating routine in the team event on Sunday at the Milano-Cortina Winter Games. Team USA ultimately won the gold medal in the team event ahead of Japan and the host nation, Italy.
Djokovic and Jelena were in attendance at the Foro di Milano in Milan, Italy, to witness the highly touted Malinin perform his free skating routine. In the video, the Serb and his wife are seen holding their heads in shock and standing to applaud one of Malinin’s moves on Sunday night.
Djokovic, who fell just short of winning a historic 25th Grand Slam title and 11th in Melbourne, is taking much-needed time off since returning home. The 38-year-old lost the Australian Open final to World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz and will now be aiming to redeem himself in the upcoming ATP circuit events.
Novak Djokovic Told the Only Thing Stopping Him From Winning the Elusive 25th Major Title
Djokovic has been searching for his 25th Grand Slam title since 2023, which was the last time he won a Major in a calendar year. Such was the dominance of the Serb that he claimed three out of the four Grand Slams in 2023. It has been more than two years, and the 38-year-old’s search for the next big title still lingers.
Famous tennis coach Patrick Mouratoglou revealed exactly what is hindering Djokovic from claiming that 25th Major title. “I don’t think he’s motivated enough for the 25th; otherwise, I think he would have done it. He was crazy motivated for the Olympic Games, he made the gold medal, and he beat Alcaraz in the final,” Mouratoglou said.
“He’s done to achieve his goals all his life. He wanted to be the best of all time. He is undoubtedly the best of all time. Nobody will beat this record anytime soon. If he practices and prepares, he can play. Of course, he doesn’t recover as well as before but he can make the matches easy until at least the quarters or the semis,” he added.
“Novak is the strongest mental in the history. If he wants something, even if the level is here (high) and he is here (low), he’s gonna match it. He’s gonna find a way. He is going to take the most important points of the match, then he’s going to win. It’s only about motivation. He knows it better than anyone. He has all the keys, we don’t,” Mouratoglou concluded.
Djokovic will resume playing on tour in the Doha Open (ATP 500) on February 16 before headlining a star-studded field at Indian Wells (Masters 1000) on March 2.
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