Novak Djokovic cried into the shoulder of his German opponent and buddy, Alexander Zverev, after learning that his pursuit of the Golden Slam would have to wait at least another three years.
I Feel So Terrible Djokovics Golden Slam Bid is Over
I told him he was the best of all time,” Zverev declared. The truth of history was what he was after, and I know that.
On Friday, Djokovic lost to Zverev in the semi-finals of the tennis competition at the Tokyo Olympics 1-6, 6-3, 6-1. Djokovic was the top-ranked Serb and had seemed unbeatable in all of the key tournaments this year.
Djokovic was aiming to make history by becoming the first male player to win all four Grand Slam titles and the Olympic gold medal in the same calendar year.
He already had the Australian, French, and Wimbledon titles from this year, and all he needed was the U.S. Open and Olympic crowns to complete the Golden Slam.
Djokovic said, “I feel really bad right now.” At this time, I just cannot give an assured answer.
To this day, Steffi Graf is the only tennis player to win all four Grand Slam titles at once (1988). But if Djokovic were to win the U.S. Open, he would complete the calendar-year Grand Slam, something no player has done since Rod Laver in 1969.
Zverev Boasted, “He won 20 Grand Slams.” It’s true that you can’t have it all.
At the end of the day, Zverev is “99% convinced” that Federer will have won the most Grand Slams, the most Master Series, and the longest time at No. 1.
Gold medal match opponent for Zverev is Karen Khachanov. The Russian won 6-3, 6-3 over the Spanish player Pablo Carreno Busta.
On Saturday, Djokovic will Compete in two Bronze Medal Matches.
His singles opponent will be Carreno Busta, while his mixed doubles opponent will be Ash Barty and John Peers of Australia. His mixed doubles partner will be Nina Stojanovic of Serbia.
As Zverev, who is taller and wider than average at 6 feet 6 inches (1.98 metres), began winning easy points with his massive serve, Djokovic began making unusual errors on a steamy evening.
After Djokovic took a 2-0 lead in the second set, Zverev claimed 10 of the final 11 games to win the set.
It’s only a Game,” they’d say. Djokovic said that “he Performed better.”
I have to give him credit for turning around the match. He was a model soldier. On my second serve, I wasn’t attracting much attention, if any at all. The level of my serve just plummeted. From a 3-2 lead in the second, I was unable to score freely. My performance was a disaster.
Since losing to Rafael Nadal in the final of the Italian Open over 2 12 months ago, Djokovic hadn’t been defeated in a single match.
Croatian doubles silver medalist Marin Cilic stated, “He’s gone these last several months without any losses and for him it’s a massive loss… just collapsing in the end.”
Cilic speculated that Djokovic’s performance dipped because of the scorching conditions he endured at the Ariake Tennis Park throughout the event.
It’s bad for him, but he’s still a tremendous champion, and he has a long career ahead of him, Cilic remarked.
After Djokovic let Zverev finish out the match with a backhand winner down the line, the two players hugged and exchanged words at the net.
Yes, I’m Ecstatic about my Victory, but I can also Empathise with his Pain, Zverev Admitted.
In 2008, Djokovic won his first and only Olympic medal, a bronze in the singles competition held in Beijing.
A little over an hour later, Djokovic and Stojanovic were playing in the mixed quarterfinals, but they, too, succumbed to the Russian team of Elena Vesnina and Aslan Karatsev 7-6 (4), 7-5.
Djokovic said, “I feel terrible right now in every way.” He added that he was hoping for a fresh start tomorrow so that he might recover and bring home at least one gold for Serbia.
Djokovic Played Doubleheaders for the Third day in a Row.
The coach of the Serbian Olympic team, Viktor Troicki, told the Associated Press on Thursday that the squad as a whole opposed Djokovic participating in mixed doubles because they didn’t want to risk him becoming burned out for the singles competition.
On Friday, Troicki remarked, “I’m sure he’ll get stronger after this and perhaps learn a few things.”
Djokovic, now 34 years old, became the first male player since Laver in 1969 to win the season’s first three Grand Slam championships.
In addition, he won Wimbledon this month for his 20th Grand Slam trophy, tying him with longtime rivals Roger Federer and Nadal. Even though he wasn’t able to bring any of the Big Three with him to Tokyo, Novak Djokovic has been making the most of his time at the Olympics.
However, the singles gold medal match will lack star power without Djokovic. While Zverev has reached one major final before (at the 2018 U.S. Open), Khachanov, ranked 25th, has reached only one major semifinal (at Wimbledon) and is currently playing in the biggest final of his career.
It was “maybe the Proudest Moment of my Career so far,” Zverev said.
He continued, “Because I’m not only playing for myself, I’m not only playing for my parents, for my brother, for my family.” The (German) athletes back at the base and the fans at home are both on my mind as I compete.
In an all-Croatian men’s doubles final, top seeds Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic prevailed against Cilic and Ivan Dodig 6-4, 3-6, 10-6. Croatia had previously earned three bronze medals in tennis at the Olympics, thus the gold and silver were significant achievements.
Marcus Daniell and Michael Venus of New Zealand defeated Austin Krajicek and Tennys Sandgren of the United States 7-6 (3), 6-2 to claim the bronze medal.
Conclusion
After Anthony Wilding of New Zealand won bronze in singles for Australasia in 1912, Daniell and Venus became the first New Zealand tennis players to win a medal in the sport since then.
With six Grand Slam singles titles to his name, Wilding was New Zealand’s most successful athlete before his untimely death in World War I at the age of 31.
