Novak Djokovic’s ex-coach Goran Ivanisevic on his Indian Wells failure against Nardi: “Aleksandar Vukic could’ve beaten him as well”

Goran Ivanisevic, a former coach of Novak Djokovic, recently discussed in depth the Serb’s disappointing performance at the Indian Wells Masters tournament last month.

Despite a challenging start to his 2024 season in January where he was unable to defend his Australian Open title, Djokovic regrouped by taking a one-month break. He then made his comeback to the ATP Tour at Indian Wells in March at the age of 36.

Despite being a five-time titlist, the player did not showcase his best performance in the Californian desert. He struggled in his first match against current World No. 67 Aleksandar Vukic, needing three sets to secure a win. Unfortunately, he was unable to bounce back in his third round match against Italian lucky loser Luca Nardi, resulting in a 4-6, 6-3, 3-6 upset and an early exit from the ATP Masters 1000 tournament.

Shortly after, Djokovic and his long-time coach Ivanisevic ended their partnership. Since joining in March 2019, the Croat had helped guide the Serb to nine Major titles and four year-end World No. 1 finishes.

During a conversation with Sasa Ozmo and Sport Klub, Ivanisevic shared his perspective on the events that led to the downfall of the 24-time Major winner at Indian Wells. The 52-year-old stated that if Vukic, his former ward’s lower-ranked opponent, had played with more determination, he would have most likely defeated the former in the second round.

The Croatian player noted that Djokovic’s performance in the first set of his defeat against Nardi was atypically poor compared to the consistent high standards he has maintained throughout his career.

“To come back to this American swing, I think if (Aleksandar) Vukic believed more he probably could have beaten him as well,”Goran Ivanisevic said. “That first set against (Luca) Nardi was maybe the worst set that I saw him play in these five years that I’ve been his coach.”

Additionally, Ivanisevic commended the young Italian for his determination and went on to state that he is already skilled enough to break into the top 50 rankings in the ATP.

“The second he won, and the third I have to admit that Nardi saw that he could beat him, he hit 16 winners, not taking anything away from him,”he added. “Novak simply wasn’t ready for that battle, even though he really tried it just didn’t go his way. Nardi is actually really good, in my opinion he should be in the top 50 already.”

“The Importance of Family for Novak Djokovic – Insights from Coach Goran Ivanisevic”

During their interaction, Goran Ivanisevic also mentioned that Novak Djokovic appeared to be lacking motivation during the Sunshine Double. This statement is supported by Djokovic’s decision to withdraw from the Miami Masters in March, following his unexpected early defeat at Indian Wells.

“Finding motivation every day, I’m with him in the training sessions and I watch it, it’s not easy to come every day to training and to motivate yourself, it’s easier for the grand slams, but for these Masters it’s hard to train with intensity over and over again, even for a perfectionist such as he,”Ivanisevic said. “It requires strength, passion, willpower… he wanted something different, to be more with family.”

Djokovic is undoubtedly determined to secure his first title of the year at the upcoming Monte-Carlo Masters. Having won the prestigious event twice before, the Serbian player will enter as the top seed at this Masters-level tournament.