Novak Djokovic: Semi-Final Post-Match Interview | Wimbledon 2023

Well, Novak, the other day you said that the young people would come for you, but so far it hasn't happened. The good news for you is that it hasn't happened yet and you are already in your ninth Wimbledon

final

. Congratulations, thank you. Just summarize. That game for us took it to the end, but you must be very happy with the way you played. Well,

semi

-

final

s, it was always going to be a very close, very tense

match

, which was the case. You know, three very close sets. I think the score maybe doesn't reflect the reality of what was happening on the court, it was very close, you know, the third set could have gone in their favor.

He was 15, 40 and 5'4 and a couple of second serves and you know he missed some shots and let me into the tiebreaker. It was really very, yes, a lot of pressure in the third, especially I had my chances early on, but he has shown why that is. one of the leaders of the Next Generation and one of the best players in the world, we have no doubt, so, yes, it is great to be part of this new generation. I love it, it's worth noting that there was a 14 year difference. Here today and from what we have seen in these championships, is it possible that you are playing the best tennis in your history?

I would like to, I would like to believe, thank you very soon, I would like to believe. That's the case, I mean, we are part of the individual sport, so you really have to trust yourself and try to get yourself in the best physical, mental and emotional state possible before you go out on the court, so I tried not to look age as an obstacle or a factor that could decide the result on the court, on the contrary, I actually feel that yes, 36 is a new 26. I guess you know it feels good and, yes, I just feel very, very motivated and I'm inspired to play the tennis that I really love, you know, obviously, this sport has given me a lot in my life, my family, my team, so I'm eternally grateful and I'll try to try to be.

I guess it's honest and, uh, uh, I guess I return the favor to this sport and play as much as I can in your last response, you use the word obstacle, um, you were forced to keep your composure several times here today, how ? To what extent do you attribute the success you've had in your career not only to how you play, but also to your mental strength and resilience, as well as obstacles early in the

match

today that could have changed the course of the match? I mean, you know, I felt really nervous after that referee's call back, but I managed to regroup and I think it was probably the first time in my career that something like this happened, it never happened to me.

I don't normally have extended grants for an ex, but maybe it was an echo from the ceiling or something, but you know I didn't really feel like I was causing any hindrance to my opponent, but that's okay, you know it was the kind of call. of the call that I have to respect and um I'm sorry, what was your question because I heard the part about the obstacle and the resilience, a demonstrated mental resilience, yeah, and before we let you go, Novak, uh, what are you doing now? rest in recovery or I have the opportunity to watch the next

semi

-final, both rest and recovery, and see the two best players go head to head and they are both playing great tennis, so you know I will enjoy it from my table massage. your hands together Djokovic