Jakub Mensik and Novak Djokovic’s careers are going in a very different direction at the moment.
Mensik beat Djokovic in the Miami Open final last month, in what is the latter’s best performance of the year so far.
However since losing in the final of the Floridian Masters 1000 tournament, Djokovic has not won a single match.
This has led to many questions over the 24-time major winner, with Djokovic withdrawing from the Italian Open since.
Jakub Mensik responds when asked if Novak Djokovic should retire
A lot of the current questions surrounding Djokovic concern his motivation, given that there is no other big titles that he is yet to win after winning Olympic gold last year.
Some believe that Djokovic is not even motivated to win Roland Garros, highlighting only one tournament that he has big aspirations to win.
When this topic was broached to the aforementioned Mensik, he told Punto de Break that he had no inclination of whether Djokovic would be retiring this year.
However, the Czech teenager revealed that he hoped Djokovic would win one more major title before he retires.
“It’s a decision Novak has to make […],” said Mensik. “Obviously he’s getting older, but he’s still fighting for the top five or top ten, showing that he still has the hunger to be at the top.
“He might not win all four Grand Slams in a single season, but he still has the potential to win these trophies. I know he’s chasing that 25th title. I really hope he can achieve it; for me, he’s the greatest of all time, even if he doesn’t win it.”
Jakub Mensik admits he could not sleep for two days after beating Novak Djokovic in the Miami Open final
Mensik won the Miami Open last month, which was not only his first Masters 1000 title, but his first main ATP Tour title of any sort.
When reliving that final, Mensik revealed that he could not sleep for two days after beating his idol.
“After winning, I couldn’t sleep for two days (laughs),” said Mensik. “Miami was an incredible but very complicated experience. I remember all the craziness leading up to the final, with the rain delay and everything else.
“There I was, playing the biggest final of my career against Novak, the guy who’s taught me everything. There couldn’t be a better feeling. I tried to enjoy it, play my best tennis. I truly believed I was ready to beat him. Luckily, I was able to muster that confidence to win that final.”
When asked to elaborate on what his relationship with Djokovic is like, Mensik explained that they first met in 2022 and have developed a friendship since then.
“We trained together after playing in the 2022 Australian Open Junior final,” revealed Mensik. “I remember him coming to see me during that match.
“It was in the press conference afterward that I first said Novak was my idol, so he responded by inviting me to his training center in Belgrade, where I had the opportunity to share a couple of practices with him. Later, just before Wimbledon, we played again in Montenegro, and that’s where our friendship began to develop.”
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