Novak Djokovic is not only a master on the tennis court, but also a master in personal connection. Whether it is Italian in Rome, Frans in Paris or Mandarin in Shanghai, the 38-year-old knows how to bring cultures together with a few sincere words.
After his opening round victory against Marin Cilic at the Rolex Paris Masters on Friday evening, Djokovic won the crowd completely again. He brought fans when he spoke with them in Chinese and signed the camera lens with a local character.
“Those are some of the sentences I have learned over the years, so I have to update my knowledge of the Chinese language,” said Djokovic, the former number 1 in the PIF ATP ranking list. “It is always a pleasure to play for such passionate fans. People have given me a lot of love and support over the years, so I try to give them back with good tennis, and also a basic knowledge of Chinese language with a few sentences.
“It was great to see the full house tonight. I know it is a national holiday and weekend, but for the first game it is incredible. It is one of the most beautiful stadiums, and I enjoy it completely.”
This mutual affection has been building up for more than ten years. Djokovic makes his 11th performance in Shanghai this week, where he has lifted the trophy four times a record. He even left his mark in 2008 and won the Nitto ATP Finals (then the Masters Tennis Cup) during his Shanghai chapter.
Djokovic Wows Shanghai crowd with local character:
However, this specific reunion came up with an extra challenge: the humidity. Djokovic noticed that he sweats faster than normal and resorted to sawing traction.
“It’s crazy, moist, to be honest. I can’t remember that the weather was so damp in China,” said Djokovic. “I don’t remember the last time I played in the humidity. It is what it is … It is the same for me, my opponent and every player. You just have to accept it, deal with it. A lot of sweating. The washing accounts will be quite high this week, but that’s okay.”
Now Djokovic is shifting his focus to a third round meeting with Yannick Hanfmann, who acclimatized the conditions. The German came through four games, including qualification, and will want to release his heavy blow on Djokovic.
In addition to taking a 1-0 Lexus ATP Head2head lead in their collision, Djokovic will also take confidence of his own serving performance on Friday against Cilic. The Serbian saved all four breakpoints with which he was confronted, according to Infosys ATP statistics, and hit 10 aces to Cilic’s six.
“I think the serving version was great. I considered him more than he got me, which is not very common when you play someone like Marin,” said Djokovic. “He has one of the best serves in the world. He was very aggressive. When he feels the ball, he plays so flat, so deep.
“I dug myself out of problems with the serve and some good photos. But it was a tough match for me, no doubt about it. It is sometimes good to start the tournament with such a competition.”
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