‘I Was Not in Favor of His Participation in Tokyo’ – Marian Vajda Opens up After Cutting Ties With Novak Djokovic
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LONDON, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 10: Novak Djokovic of Serbia talks with his coach Marian Vajda during a training session prior to the Nitto ATP World Tour Finals at O2 Arena on on November 10, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
It has been a turbulent start to the 2022 season for Novak Djokovic. Firstly, he failed to defend his Australian Open title Down Under after the visa cancelation fiasco. After a much talked about comeback in the Dubai Duty-Free Tennis Championships, he suffered a shock quarterfinal loss against Jiri Vesely, who was ranked outside the top 100 in the ATP rankings.
Subsequently, the 20-time Grand Slam champion lost his Number 1 ranking to Medvedev. Further, Djokovic announced a split with his long-time coach, Marian Vajda, recently in an emotional message. The two ended a successful partnership that lasted 15 years.
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Post the split, Vajda opened up on his time coaching the Serbian legend.
Marian Vajda reveals why Novak Djokovic participated in the Tokyo Olympics
Although his coach was not in favor of his participation at the Tokyo Olympics, Djokovic went on to play. However, he lost the semifinal and bronze-medal matches, returning empty-handed.
Speaking about this, Vajda said, “I was not in favor of his participation in Tokyo. He ran out of strength in the US Open finals, Olympics drained him mentally and physically. I understood his goal, he longed to win gold for Serbia.”
#Vajda: I was not in favour of his participation in Tokyo. He ran out of strength in the US Open finals, Olympics drained him mentally and physically. I understood his goal, he longed to win gold for Serbia. @Aktualitysk #Djokovic
— Saša Ozmo (@ozmo_sasa) March 3, 2022
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The former World Number 1 had a phenomenal 2021 season, winning the Australian Open, the French Open, and Wimbledon. He came agonizingly close to completing a ‘Calendar Grand Slam’. However, he lost the US Open finals to Daniil Medvedev in straight sets.
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Further, in an emotional message, Djokovic thanked Vajda for guiding him throughout the years. “While he might be leaving the professional team he will always be family and I can’t thank him enough for all he has done,” Djokovic said while announcing the split.
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WATCH THIS STORY: The Greatest Comebacks in Tennis
Djokovic would be eager to make a strong comeback with two big tournaments in the form of the ‘Sunshine Double’ coming up. Can Djokovic reclaim the top spot in the ATP rankings? Let us know your views in the comments below.
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