The fraternity may have found the ultimate successor to Novak Djokovic in a rising ATP star. He is America’s budding tennis star Nishesh Basavareddy. With an impressive record, including two ITA titles, this Stanford standout has made an impression in the fraternity quite strong. Yet, it wasn’t just Basavereddy’s performance that caught attention of people but his uncanny resemblance to the Serbian legend. In a recent podcast discussion, Basavareddy shared how his childhood admiration for Djokovic shaped his playstyle, bringing him recognition in his favorite sport.

Basavareddy joined The Changeover Podcast to talk about how replicating Novak Djokovic’s playstyle has worked for his success. This teenage ATP sensation is a two-time ITA All-American champion and qualified for the ATP Next Gen Accelerator in both years. Recently, he announced on his IG platform that he is going pro finally. “Since I started playing tennis at three years old, it’s been my dream to be a pro tennis player. Thanks to the support from my friends, family, coaches, Stanford family, and the USTA, I can live out my childhood dream. With that being said, I will be forgoing my NCAA eligibility to play pro tennis. Looking forward to what the future holds,” he wrote. Basavareddy’s playstyle often reminds the fraternity of the 24-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic. Now, in a recent discussion, he delves deeper into that aspect explaining how he has been following his favorite player since the beginning.

“Yeah, when I was younger I used to try to like copy his serve and stuff which maybe when I was younger his serve wasn’t as good to that probably wasn’t the best thing but yeah that’s he’s been my favorite player since I was growing up so and also when I was younger I didn’t think I was going to be the biggest guy I ended up growing a little more than I thought I would be,” said the young ATP star highlighting how he idolized the Serb and learned from his skills. Basavareddy then continued,  “But it was always important to like take the ball early, move the ball around, do different thing not I was never going to be the guy that’s going to like overpower someone or serve big if big plus one thing like that. So, I think learning from a guy like him who uses like all parts of the court, is an all-rounder players who uses the pace of the other guy to redirect and things like that, I think those have been all things that I’ve worked on since I was young.” His words echoed how minutely he’s observed Serb’s interesting on-court qualities and applied them to his style to become as successful as he is now.

Basavareddy is a talented player who is the third American in Challenger to have more than 40 wins in a single season after 1978. His Stanford coach is impressed with his talent and showed great faith in the ATP star’s future.

Nishesh Basavareddy’s coach praised the player’s sheer dedication to the sport

Paul Goldstein, Basavareddy’s coach expressed great satisfaction in watching the ATP star’s growth. “Nishesh is a special young man whose successes on the tennis court are a tribute to his unique talent, highly disciplined work ethic and sheer passion for our sport, More importantly, he and his family are thoughtful, gracious, and wonderful people. Nishesh is truly realising a lifelong dream by pursuing his professional tennis career and I could not imagine being happier for someone that I am for him. Nishesh will always have a home at Stanford and will have our entire community enthusiastically behind him,” he said. Goldstein’s comment highlighted Basavareddy’s sheer talent and hard work.

Nishesh Basavareddy has many things similar to Novak Djokovic. More than replicating the Serb’s playstyle, this American ATP star has showcased a spirit and hard work mentality like the Serb which hints how he might be a true successor of Djokovic in the future. Do you think he can make it?