MELBOURNE, Australia — Novak Djokovic won some of his 24 Grand Slams without playing his best tennis. When his level wasn’t quite where it needed to be, his body would step up to outlast and outmaneuver his opponents.
Before he became the Novak Djokovic he is now — men’s Grand Slam title record-holder and the longest-lasting member of the ‘Big Three’ — he was in a very different situation. His level was comparable to that of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, but his body kept letting him down.
Advertisement
He retired against Nadal at the 2006 French Open; he did the same thing against the same opponent in the Wimbledon semifinals a
→ Continue reading at The New York Times Sports
