‘Super human’ Novak Djokovic: I can still win Wimbledon after knee trouble

Novak Djokovic said he would have missed Wimbledon too much had he not turned up in SW19 - Getty Images/Rob Newell

Novak Djokovic’s three-week recovery from knee surgery has been described as “superhuman” by his main rival Carlos Alcaraz.

Djokovic has spent the past couple of days playing practice sets at Wimbledon and on Saturday he declared himself confident of being able “to compete at the highest level”.

Alcaraz, who defeated Djokovic in a classic final here last summer, told Spanish reporters that he has been stunned by the rapid turnaround between Djokovic’s operation on June 5 and his apparent return to full fitness.

“I told him that what he is doing is superhuman,” Alcaraz explained on Saturday. “The truth is that the recovery time he has had is amazing. Just two weeks, two and a half weeks, but he is already playing sets and points at a very, very level. high.

“He usually recovers quickly in general. We all know what he does off the court to be 100 per cent. The nutrition, the rest and everything he does is perfect so he can be there and perform at his best. So, in a way, I am surprised that he is already like this, but on the other hand not so much because of how he is.”

Djokovic has been so confident of his recovery timetable that he took Tuesday evening off to fly to Munich and support the Serbian football team at the Euros. Speaking at Wimbledon on Saturday, he was in buoyant spirits, admitting that even his wife Jelena had been surprised by the speed of his recovery.

Asked whether it wouldn’t have been more prudent to write Wimbledon off and prepare for the Olympic Games instead, Djokovic replied: “My wife also kind of asked the same question, right? Which is normal. At 37 years old, you want to maybe have less risk and prepare yourself for Olympic Games.

“So, from that perspective, I don’t have an answer to that, but I do have something that is described as a feeling of not missing out at a grand slam.

“I would just say it’s this incredible desire to play, just to compete. Particularly because it is Wimbledon, the tournament that always has been a dream tournament for me when I was a kid. Just the thought of me missing Wimbledon was just not correct. I didn’t want to deal with that.”

Djokovic has been in high spirits despite the knee injury - Getty Images/Clive Brunskill

Djokovic explained that his rehab has been carefully managed over the 24 days since the operation on the meniscus in his right knee. He pushed the joint a little further each day, with no setbacks, and so remains on course to emulate Taylor Fritz’s miraculous recovery from the same injury in 2021. In fact Fritz, the American No.2, had an even faster turnaround.

“When that happened in fourth round of Roland Garros, I made a very quick decision to make surgery” said Djokovic, who twisted his knee on a slippery clay court while he was playing against Francisco Cerundolo.

“Then I had extensive conversations with certain athletes that have been through very similar situations, for example, Taylor Fritz who has been through something pretty much the same like I have three years ago. I think he injured himself also in Roland Garros. Twenty one days after, he played his first round in Wimbledon. [Stan] Wawrinka, Lindsey Vonn [the skier], they all shared their experiences.

“Really, that gave me faith and optimism that if rehab is done right and correct, and if of course knee responds well, which is something that is very unpredictable, then there is a pretty good chance that I’ll make Wimbledon.

“My intensity is very high now. I played two sets, hour and a half, with [Daniil] Medvedev, then an hour with [Emil] Ruusuvuori. So the last three days have given me enough optimism and good signs that I can actually be in a state to compete on the highest level for the next few weeks hopefully.”

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