“You can do anything you set your mind to” – Benjamin Franklin. For champions, like Novak Djokovic, it’s very important to take control of their minds and build a habit of winning. Almost 22 years of relentless training and hard work, along with the art of self-mastery, is the secret behind his 24 Grand Slam titles. In his interview, Djokovic has often admitted how he battles his own demons to bring discipline and consistency in his life. Prior to 2010, Djokovic had won only one Grand Slam title; during that phase of his career, mid-match collapses due to fitness issues became a big problem in his career. After that, things took a different track when he met Dr. Igor Cetojevic, who later advised him to switch to a gluten-free diet. “Suddenly there was an X factor, a change in my diet that allowed my body to perform the way it was meant to,” he explained in his book Serve to Win in 2014. How much of his life is still about maintaining consistency while building good habits and rituals?

Well, for Novak Djokovic, success in life is more like 95% mindset and 5% strategy. In a previous interview, while talking about how mental strength and grit make champions who they are, he revealed, “Mental strength is not a gift. It is something that comes with work. I train for it…I might appear locked in, but there is a storm inside. The biggest battle is always raging inside. You have your doubts and fears. I feel it every single match. Nothing but mindset. ‘Just think positive thoughts, be optimistic, there is no room for failure.’ It is impossible (to think like that). You are a human being.”

Recently, Djokovic visited the Aman Tennis Court in Turkiye and there he met the Oscar-winning actor Eddie Redmayne. The actor later asked the Serb to shed light on how consistency has been a cornerstone for his success, both on and off the court. Hearing it, Novak Djokovic said, “Phenomenal question. Mostly it’s about consistency because I feel that the brain can stream us that way. If you do that, whether a right or wrong thing, over and over again, then it becomes a habit. It becomes a part of your daily routine, and then you get results or outcomes out of it. What you invest is that’s what you get. So I tried to have certain routines consistently there on a daily basis.”

Talking about rituals, well, in 2020, he revealed his pre-match rituals by saying, “I do have certain routines before the match. I like to spend time by myself, I like to meditate, I like to have conscious breathing techniques that put me in the zone, analyze my opponents and my own game.” Then, in December 2023, during an interaction on 60 Minutes with CBS, he talked about why he ends the day by writing about his activities and how much they impact him emotionally.

“I try to write on a paper with a pen. There’s something about that ritual where you’re emotionally cleansing, I think, as well when you’re doing that and spending some quality time with yourself and your thoughts. I think it serves you well,” said the 24-time Grand Slam champion.

Talking about his other rituals, just days before the AO, he is often spotted visiting a botanical garden and spending some time alone to clear his head before the start of the season. So, these are some of the routines that have brought success to him recently. But in this season, success seems to be a far-fetched thing for Djokovic. Hence, he has chosen to take part in the Geneva Open, before setting things rolling at the Roland Garros. Will this decision bring success to the Serb’s camp?

American tennis legend shares his verdict on Novak Djokovic’s decision to play in Geneva before the French Open

Novak Djokovic‘s biggest success in the last twelve months has been winning the gold medal at the Paris Olympics. Other than that, he has failed to impress his fans. In 2025, he has a win-loss record of just 10-7. His track record on clay this season has been a worrying factor for all the Nole fans. He was knocked out of the Monte Carlo Masters by Alejandro Tabilo (3-6,4-6) in the R32 itself. Then again, in Madrid, he faced an early exit at the hands of Matteo Arnaldi. After that, he opted to take his name out of the Italian Open, but he has accepted a wild-card entry to play in the ATP 250 event in Geneva.

Talking about the Serb’ decision, the former world number one, Andy Roddick said, “Novak takes a wild card into Geneva, I think it’s the right call, you know, I’m just gonna preface this with, I get everythimg wrong about Novak every time, every time; what would make sense to me is maybe in his movement he didn’t look great in Monte Carlo and Madrid, he wasn’t kind of fighting off one more ball, it feels like when he got stretched and he got exposed.”

He believes that Djokovic and his team will now go back to basics in training. And, perhaps, repetition is the key to the Serb re-finding his form. Novak Djokovic will face Hungary’s Marton Fucsovics in his first match in Geneva. He has a 5-0 record against the Hungarian. Can he now seal another victory and get off to a winning start in this pre-French Open tournament?