Former Russian tennis player Mikhail Youzhny has given an interview to the Championat portal in which he reviewed current events in the world of tennis. Youzhny, who serves as Denis Shapovalov's coach, criticized Djokovic's lack of ambition in the final stretch of the season and also applauded how Nadal managed to return to competition after the pandemic break.
Youzhny highlighted Djokovic's change after the break and his carelessness after securing the world number 1 at the end of the season in something that some media have described as 'tanking' or being lost. “What happened at the US Open, happened. But if you look at his psychological state despite winning the title in Rome and all that it cost him … Or the same final at Roland Garros. He did not have the same emotional state after the break. . Djokovic wanted to finish the year as number one and he already assured it in Vienna. But when he achieved this, you could say that he played those two games to the teeth, as he played against Sonego. He just didn't play that game. “
The Russian also emphasized Djokovic's psychological change in the resumption of the schedule, highlighting the episode in which Djokovic accidentally hit a linesman. “Djokovic hasn't stopped playing since the beginning of the year. He didn't lose a game before the US Open but then he had his incident in the first set and how he reacted to it. What does this show us? That his nervous system was not ready to change like this. The best player in the world had a slip at the US Open. Yes, you can say whenever you want that it was an accident and that the ball might not have hit you. But I have rarely seen Djokovic throw balls into the stands whatever the situation. I have rarely seen Djokovic yell at the linesman like he did in Rome. And no one has seen Novak like in the Roland Garros final, not even himself. “
“Nadal's planning shows that he is different from the others”
Youzhny also had praise for Rafa Nadal and his strategy of not playing the Cincinnati Masters 1,000 and the US Open to focus on Roland Garros. “I think Nadal did make the most of himself. He felt that it would be detrimental for him to go to the United States and he did not go. That sets Nadal apart from the rest. I would think 'Yes, I haven't played in almost six months but I want to play well at Roland Garros, so I will miss the Cincinnati Masters 1,000 and the US Open.' He understood it well from the inside, how things happen and why he made that decision. And it turns out he did the right thing. “
The former Russian tennis player also wanted to highlight the difficulties that tennis players have gone through in 2020 and how the fact of playing without an audience and after the break has had an impact on their sports performance. “It has been very difficult for the players. From the outside it is not easy to understand how difficult it is for them. The first thing you feel is that you are imprisoned. You live in a prison shaped like a tennis stadium. It is clear that none of the tennis players are used to it. to this. And you also play with the empty stands. Nobody has had a long global series and only Andrey Rublev is saved. I have analyzed the performance of the great players. Many like Nadal played very little. He did not play the US Open and returned to Rome losing to Schwartzman in the quarterfinals. Then he won Roland Garros and did not play again until the Paris Masters. And after the break he only played in four tournaments with variable success. “