There’s a new sheriff in Novak Djokovic’s town, and his name is Boris Becker.
Djokovic announced on Wednesday that Becker will be his new head coach in 2013. Longtime boss Marian Vajda will remain on the team along with Miljan Amanovic and Gebhard Phil-Gritsch, albeit in a seemingly reduced role. Becker is scheduled to travel with Djokovic to the Australian Open, Dubai, Miami, Monte-Carlo, Rome, the French Open, Wimbledon, Cincinnati, the U.S. Open, Shanghai, Paris, and the World Tour Finals.
“I am proud Novak invited me to become his head coach,” said Becker, a former world No. 1. “I will do my best to help him reach his goals, and I am sure we can achieve great things together.”
“In a few weeks Novak and I will start the eighth year of our cooperation,” Vajda explained. “During that period we have achieved almost all the goals we had. I realized that Novak needed a new head coach in order for him to continue improving certain parts of his game. At the same time I will have more time for my family. Becker’s assignment will not affect much my position in the team, since I will do all I can for Novak–just like I did before.”
“I am really excited to have the opportunity to work with Boris,” Djokovic assured. “He is a true legend, someone who has great tennis knowledge, and his experience will help me win new trophies from the Grand Slams and other tournaments. Boris is a great person, too, and I am sure he will fit in our team in the best possible way. Boris brings a new fresh approach, and together with Vajda he will make a winning combination.”
Tomas Berdych opines:
“I wanted to hire also former star but he didnt pick up the phone#badluck”
https://twitter.com/tomasberdych/status/413351355345285120/photo/1
Actually, I think this coaching relationship has potential both ways, Boris could do with a gluten-free diet!
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BbyYnOCIEAAELMQ.jpg:large
Hahahaha.
#LayOffThePils
Lol at the photo. Has Djoker taken leave of his senses?
Hey ritb, have you bumped into Serena? Aren’t you living there?
http://news.tennistonic.com/tennis-news?nid=1579
@hawkeye63, is Serena in Mauritius with the rest of Patrick’s training group? I read that she did not come because of business commitments in Miami. Not that it would make any difference to me, I have better things to do than hang around Hotel Paradis!
However, the hotel is not too far from where I stay in Tamarin but as a local I know better than to frequent the tourists’ hang-outs and be ripped-off…………
The link I provided says she’s been spotted there but I also had heard she couldn’t go so who knows.
-10 deg C and lots of snow on the ground. Betcha it’s a little nicer where you are right now.
#Jealous
@hawkeye63, yeah with those sort of temperatures where you are you have reason to be jealous tbh. It’s 26 deg C in Black River right now but its the humidity that’s suffocating for visitors: 90% today. For us, it’s par for the course………….
An article from The Telegraph that states that Novak’s choice of Becker as new head coach is to help him improve his mental fortitude. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/tennis/novakdjokovic/10525266/Novak-Djokovics-appointment-of-Boris-Becker-is-bid-to-improve-mental-fortitude-in-quest-for-more-titles.html
Also because
“He [Djokovic] is desperate to add to his six majors, and to complete his career set by winning at Roland Garros. And he is also frustrated by the way fans continue to dote on Federer and Nadal, while he himself is treated with admiration rather than adoration.”
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/ten…re-titles.html
I came back here to see this surprising news. I guess that Djoker feels he needs someone new to help him with his mental strength.
I read the article from The Telegraph and found it interesting. Djoker seems intent on doing better than he did this year.
I thought Lendl was an ideal choice the moment I heard the news. It was obvious to me, considering that Lendl has been in the exact same position as Murray when he struggled to win his first slam. I also knew that Lendl has the toughness and the mindset to help Murray with his mental strength.
Djoker picking Becker is surprising to me, but if he believes that it’s about mental strength and attitude and believes that Becker has expertise in this area, then we will just have to wait and see what happens.
I really think this Boris/Nole show has potential as a Broadway act!:
RT @juanjosetennis: “My reaction to the Djokovic coaching news: *raises eyebrows* *opens mouth to say something* *closes mouth w/o saying anything* *sighs*”
RT @linzsports: “@juanjosetennis that’s the same reaction Boris had!”
Wait, I thought he wanted to improve his volley with Becker. He wanted a new coach to win FO? What does Becker know about FO? He never won one!
I think Nole believes he is good enough to beat Rafa at RG. Never mind that he has yet to, he thinks he is good enough to. Novak said he is hoping Boris will help him on the mental side, so clearly he does not think there is anything wrong with his technical game.
Can’t wait to see the 2 of them working!
That is what I find surprising about picking Becker. He never won RG. Clay was not his thing. Is Djoker going to now become a serve and volleyer? Because that was Becker’s style of play. I can’t see that happening.
I never thought of Becker as having a really tough mental attitude on court. I thought he was brash and somewhat cocky and arrogant, but that isn’t what mental strength is all about.
Anyway, it’s not really my concern. Djoker can pick who he picks and do what he wants. My main concern is Rafa and he is fine with Uncle Toni and his team.
“brash and somewhat cocky and arrogant” (i.e., confidence) may not be what mental strength is ALL about but there is a large overlap between the two in a Venn diagram.
Three-time Wimbledon champion Boris Becker, who compiled a 32-14 mark in fifth sets, once said, “The fifth set is not about tennis, it’s about nerves.”
Nole can be strong in the fifth but he can also falter. I think this is where Nole thinks Becker can help. I was always impressed with Boom-Boom’s mental strength and his fifth set record illustrates this.
The timing is telling…
Russell Fuller @russellcfuller 5h
Boris Becker has just told the BBC that he was first approached by Novak Djokovic on the day that Rafa Nadal replaced him as world number 1
Becker played a lot of 5th sets simply because he often lost the first 2 sets in 5 set matches. Fortunately, I’ve just finished reading his autobiography, and I can see clearly where he is coming from and it’s not where Nole wants to go. Trust me.
Sorry, but I still am not convinced that Becker has what Djoker thinks he needs.
I also think it’s revealing that Becker was approached by Djoker on the day that Rafa replaced him as world number 1. It appears that Djoker is grasping at straws because of losing the #1 ranking.
I just don’t see how this is going to work. But only time will tell.
I wonder when he hired Fibak, on the day he lost to Muzza at the Wimby final??
#MidTennisLifeCrisis
One such player who wouldn’t fall into that cross-section would be Tomic the Tank Engine but he is more the exception rather than the rule.
Becker lost the early sets in his 5 set matches because he turned up unprepared on the morning after the night before………if you know what I mean. I don’t see that as an accolade. If Nole’s ambition is to learn how to win 5th sets, that’s OK by me. I would have thought he’d seek advice from someone who didn’t need to win in 5 sets so often.
Oh I agree nadline. I’m just saying this is how Nole believes Boris can help.
Nole hasn’t shown success in his additions to his team with Todd Martin and Fibak and I doubt Boris will be the exception.
So what’s Boris going to teach Novak, how not to touch the net in the 5th set?
I don’t think it’s just about 5th sets. I think it’s more about consistent mental strength for the duration of the match.
Again, I believe Becker was relatively strong in that area but I don’t think he can necessarily translate that to Nole or, in general, be an effective head coach.
Just like Connors was a great player, he isn’t a good coach.
If he was willing and able, a guy like Agassi could help him more in this and other areas and would potentially make a great coach.
Becker was an instinctive player as were most of the players of his generation. They relied mainly on their natural talent. Training was mainly about fitness in those days, not so much cultivating technique like they do today. They used what they had to their utmost advantage They never tried to change their style. Becker would never have contemplated changing his attacking game to cope with another player, for instance.
The pro-tennis environment now is foreign to that of the players 30 years ago. That’s why commentators nowadays spend a lot of time discussing peripheral matters during a match instead on commentating on what’s going on because they can’t relate to the psyche of today’s players. So I think it’s a mistake to think that a player from 30 years ago would be able to help a top player today to improve his technique.
Lendl is an exception. He was so desperate to be at the same table as McEnroe and Borg that he worked on his technique and fitness, but he was an exception to the rule.
Interview with Boris about how he was approached to be Novak’s coach and what he thinks he can bring to the table: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/tennis/novakdjokovic/10530352/Boris-Becker-Andy-Murray-inspired-me-to-take-role-with-Novak-Djokovic.html