Tennis bomb: Novak Djokovic fires his coach Goran Ivanisevic

Novak Djokovic He ends 2023 as one of the best of the year, winning three of the four Grand Slams (Australian Open, Roland Garros and US Open) and also taking home the ATP Finals trophy. With good feelings, everything suggested that this season would start the same or better, but the opposite turned out to be the case. Despite reaching the semi-finals of the Australian major, the Serbian himself said he felt strange about how the tournament was going. Thus, he arrived in Indian Wells after not having participated since 2019 due to the pandemic and his refusal to be vaccinated. Surprisingly, he fell in the second round to Luca Nardi, who was ranked 123rd in the world at the time.

These results seem to have satisfied the patience of the world number 1, who a few hours ago used his social networks to announce the separation from Goran Ivanisevic, who had been his coach since 2019. First of all, he started by talking about the reasons that led him to join his team. “I remember very well the moment I invited Goran to join my team. It was 2018, and Marian (Vajda) and I wanted to innovate and bring a little serving magic to our duo.

He then highlighted both their personal relationship and the enormous accomplishments they have achieved working together. “In fact, we have brought not only the service, but also a lot of laughter, fun, a year-end #1 ranking, record achievements and 12 more Grand Slam tournaments (and a few finals) in total since during. Did I also mention a little drama?

The announcement came at the end. “Goran and I decided to stop working together a few days ago. Our on-field chemistry has had its ups and downs, but our friendship has always been strong. In fact, I’m proud to say that in addition to winning tournaments, we also fought a side battle with Parcheesi for many years. And this tournament never ends for us.

He closed the post with a brief but moving message. “Šefinjo, thank you for everything my friend. I love you” .

With this announcement, Nole, who will return to the courts just for the clay court round of the Monte Carlo Masters 1000, leaves behind a relationship not only of friendship, but also full of success. Even though Ivanisevic joined the team in the summer of 2019 to partner Marian Vajda, it was not until 2022 that the Croatian became the Serbian’s head coach. after Marian decided to step down after noticing how her role on the team had shrunk.

For some, Ljubičić has never gotten the recognition he deserves, since joining Djokovic’s management he has helped him win an impressive 12 Grand Slam titles, two ATP finals, eight Masters 1000 and three ATP 500s. This is why the question arises among the most critical. Is it better to develop a young player to become one of the best in the world or maintain him as one of the greatest legends in the history of world sport?

The truth is that the former coach of Marin Čilić never managed to win the award for the best coach on the circuit, even when the merits obtained were more than obvious, since in 2021 and 2023 he was the main architect of the glory of Nole in three of the four great ones. Moreover, even the same duo repeatedly joked that the recognitions fell on the shoulders of others, as if the work done by the short film with the 24-time Grand Slam champion was completely ignored.

What is curious here is that Ljubičić himself knew that his work could stop at any moment. Just over a year ago, in January 2023, he released a statement that, when viewed in perspective, serves as a perfect foreshadowing of what happened in his relationship with Novak. “With Djokovic it’s like coaching Madrid, if you don’t win a few matches they fire you” he said at the time.