“A lot of players look up to me, Roger Federer & Rafael Nadal, the legends of the game” – Novak Djokovic on his ‘responsibility’ to provide leadership

Novak Djokovic recently talked about how it is his role and responsibility in providing leadership and guidance to the younger generation of players . The Ser said that he along with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, are seen as role models by up-and-coming players.

Djokovic is currently in New York to defend his title at the 2024 US Open. He aims to secure his fifth title at the New York Major and his 25th Grand Slam triumph overall . He is seeded second in the tournament and will kick off his campaign at Flushing Meadows by facing qualifier Radu Albot in the first round.

Recently while speaking to the press ahead of the US Open, Novak Djokovic said that being in the tour for so many years enabled him to see many younger generations of players come in, new rivalries being formed and much more, which he said was very important for the development of the game.

“I have been around quite a few years, and different generations of players, you know, kind of switching and the new players, exciting players coming into the tour, the new rivalries are being created, which I think is important for the tour, in general,” Djokovic said.

The former World No.1 expressed that advocating for players is something which he loves doing and something which motivates him.

“I also have a lot of things off the court that still run my juices. I love being part of the tennis story, and PTPA that we talked about is also something that motivates me that I have been working on for many years, even before it was founded, and tried always to advocate for players and even before that in the player council within the ATP structure,” the Serb added.

Novak Djokovic stated that he sees it as his responsibility, given his reputation and status in the sport, to offer guidance to younger players who look up to the “legends of the game” – him, Roger Federer, and Rafael Nadal.

“I feel like it’s also part of my responsibility as being somebody who has a sound name and a status in sport, and a lot of players look up to me and [Roger] Federer, [Rafael] Nadal, the legends of the game, and they look for some kind of guidance and they carefully listen to our words and actions, and they hope to get that kind of leadership, as well. So that’s what I personally feel. I always try to balance things out, but I think I can contribute to certain things in a positive way, and that’s why I’m still here,” he said .

Novak Djokovic: “Grand Slams and representing my country, that’s what actually motivates me the most”

In the aforementioned press conference, Novak Djokovic stated that he enjoys his rivalry with the likes of Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, Alexander Zverev, Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas. He said that these match-ups continue to ignite his passion for the sport and drive him to perfect his game

“Rivalries that I have with Jannik and Carlos along with other guys from the generation before, like, Zverev, Medvedev, Tsitsipas are the kind of matchups that still bring that joy of competition to me and inspire me to push myself to perfect the game and to give myself an ability to be able to run for hours with them on the biggest stage,” Djokovic said.

Djokovic, 37, stated that his age is a factor he has to take into consideration when picking and choosing the tournaments he wants to compete at. The Serb said that playing at the Grand Slam tournaments and representing his country is what actually motivates him to continue playing .

“Of course there is a big age difference, but that’s still not affecting me in a big way. I feel good about myself, about my game, about where I am and what I have achieved in the last several years. I have to be a bit more selective in my strategy of calendar and how I pick and choose events. So when it comes to that, it’s Grand Slams and representing my country. That’s what actually motivates me the most . That’s what drives me the most still,” he added.

Novak Djokovic most recently represented Serbia in tennis at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where he defeated Carlos Alcaraz in the final to win the gold medal. This was his second Olympic medal with the first one coming in 2008 when he defeated James Blake to win the bronze medal at the Beijing Olympics.

If the Serb wins his first-round match against Albot, he will face either Laslo Djere or Jan-Lennard Struff in the second round.