Novak Djokovic shown support after damning John McEnroe comments | Tennis | Sport

Greg Rusedski has disagreed with fellow ex-pro John McEnroe on Novak Djokovic’s chances of winning a 25th Grand Slam title. The 38-year-old’s last Grand Slam title came in the 2023 US Open. 

The tournaments have since been dominated by Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner. They have won four of the last eight Grand Slams available, with the last three seeing the pair come up against each other in the final.

However, former British number one Rusedski believes it’s too early to dismiss the Serb. Speaking on the Off Court Cuts podcast, he said: “I thought it was really interesting to hear McEnroe’s comments that he doesn’t feel Novak can beat Alcaraz and Sinner back-to-back.

“We all feel that, but boy was he good in his opening round and let’s look at one statistic. 100 wins Down Under in Australia and he has done that in three of the four Slams.

“The only one he hasn’t done it is in the US Open. 400 wins at majors! Most people don’t do that on all of the tournaments they play. Don’t discount Novak if he can move through the rounds easily.

“Everyone was talking about his neck being a little bit sore and asking whether he would be healthy enough, but he knows how to manage his body. That’s why he’s the GOAT.

“At the age of 38, he’s playing better than 97 or 98 of the players in the top 100 in the world. It was an impressive opener and he saved a lot of energy.

“With Novak, he’s talking big. He’s had an incredible record down in Australia, so don’t ever discount a great legend.”

The comments come after McEnroe made his prediction on TNT Sports. When asked if Djokovic could overcome both Alcaraz and Sinner at a Grand Slam, he said: “In his heart of hearts and in my opinion, no.

“I don’t think he can beat both of those guys when he has already had to go through five matches — that’s the problem. That’s the reality he has talked about.

“A lot of people might think, ‘Why are you still going at this point, you haven’t won in a couple of years and you are so used to winning?’ Why not would be the question?

“In my book, he is No 3 in the world. He made four semis last year and beat Alcaraz here. He must think he can still win this otherwise, because he won’t play unless he thinks he can win, which is tougher because he doesn’t play much.”