Novak Djokovic faces Australia’s Matthew Ebden in the first round of the Paris Olympics.
The moment is creeping ever closer for Novak Djokovic before he begins his desperate bid for Olympic glory.
Despite the Serb having a bronze medal from Beijing in his collection, out of his 24 grand slams and 98 major titles, he is still missing the all important gold medal.
A heartbreaking defeat from a set and a break up in the Tokyo 2020 semi-final to Alexander Zverev left the Serb in tears as he left the court.
Having retired from the French Open after sustaining a knee injury, the Serb made an astonishing recovery to make the Wimbledon final, ultimately losing out to Carlos Alcaraz.
Top seed Jannik Sinner withdrew from the Olympics through illness, meaning Djokovic has inherited the number one spot with Alcaraz in second.
What change has Novak Djokovic noticed in the past few days before the Olympics?
Despite his remarkable Wimbledon return, the manner in which he was defeated in the final has still left some question marks over the Serb’s fitness.
The weary-looking seven-time champion was condemned to his second heaviest defeat in a grand slam final, winning just ten games against Alcaraz.
Speaking alongside his Serbian teammates in their pre-Olympic press conference via Youtube, Djokovic said: “The expectations are always high which is something I cannot change and do not want to. I will approach this with maximum effort.
“I have lost in the semi finals in the previous Olympics, which is an obstacle that I haven’t been able to overcome yet,” he admitted.
“We haven’t had time this year to prepare properly because the tennis calendar was very busy and I played Wimbledon because it’s the most important tournament in our sport and is a softer surface, so it gave me time to adapt with my injury on my knee.
“In the last four or five days I have felt more ready for the Olympics than I have for Wimbledon and I am sure it will show in this tournament.”
This news will likely come as a big relief for Djokovic fans with all their hopes resting on a successful campaign in Paris.
Who will Novak Djokovic have to beat to win Olympic gold?
The opening round draw between Djokovic and Matthew Ebden prompted a funny social media reaction from the Australian alternate, as he digested the difficult news.
A blockbuster clash between the ‘King of Clay’ and Beijing gold medallist Rafael Nadal is the real eye-opener from Thursday’s men’s singles Olympic draw, but with the Spaniard far from his best, Djokovic is expected to progress to the latter stages.
He looks likely to meet his 2020 conqueror Zverev in the last four, with the German having looked supreme on clay this year, narrowly losing out in the final of the French Open in June.
The 21-year-old superstar Alcaraz can only meet Djokovic in the final or the bronze medal match, with the top two seeds the red-hot favorites to go the distance.
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