Novak Djokovic has once again fallen short in his quest for an elusive 100th ATP title, this time at the Madrid Open.
John Isner thinks Djokvovic only cares about Wimbledon, having just witnessed him fall at the first hurdle in Spain.
The fourth seed lost his opening match at the Madrid Open, having been defeated 6-3, 6-4 by Matteo Arnaldi, with many fans thinking Djokovic should now retire.
Djokovic also lost his first match at the Monte Carlo Masters, although that did follow a runner-up spot at the Miami Open.
The former ATP number one will soon turn his attention to the French Open, having decided to withdraw from the Italian Open.
Andy Roddick recalls epic Australian Open final as big Novak Djokovic change spotted
His latest endeavours have caught the eye of Andy Roddick, who referenced Djokovic’s five-hour, 53-minute 2012 Australian Open final win over Rafael Nadal in his latest analysis.
“Novak won a five-setter before that match too,” he said on the Served with Andy Roddick podcast. “It’s insane.
“I know the narrative now around Novak is iron man, can play forever. From 2008 to 2011 that wasn’t the reputation. It was like you wanted the long matches and the heat and all of those elements.
“To his credit, I don’t know that I have ever seen someone take as significant a weakness and turn it into as significant a strength in the course of a career as Novak has done with his fitness and being able to put people in a pain chamber. He used to want to avoid it and now he just fully jumps in.”
What Andy Roddick thinks is the difference between Novak Djokovic and Andre Agassi
It was a simply stunning display from both competitors in Melbourne that year, with Djokovic beating Nadal 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7(5-7), 7-5.
The match has gone down as legendary and as the longest Open Era Grand Slam final of all-time, with the Serbian having also been involved in a five-set semi-final win over his now-coach Andy Murray.
Djokovic finds himself chasing further major success in 2025, but he is the man at the very top of the pile for Grand Slam titles.
The iconic Serbian boasts a stunning 24 successes, two ahead of Nadal and four ahead of Roger Federer.
Importantly, his record is not under any serious threat given that his two former rivals have both retired from tennis.
American icon Pete Sampras is the nearest rival of the Big Three with 14, although it is eight-time Grand Slam champion Andre Agassi who was involved in Roddick’s latest discussion about Djokovic.
“I do think there is a difference,” he said of the duo. “Andre early on, he would kind of skip events and play two majors a year and it was more just is he fully in it.
“I don’t think that was the book on Novak. It was more an actual physical fitness thing where he had to pull different levers and have diets a certain way and became obsessed with recovery and all this other stuff.
“I think Andre took something which was a question mark and turned it into a strength but I think that the actual switch was from being undisciplined to being incredibly disciplined whereas Novak’s was additive. It was learning and applying.”
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