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WIMBLEDONJuly 12, 2015Novak DjokovicLONDON, ENGLAND N. DJOKOVIC/R. Federer THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. You're famously careful about what you eat. I'm wondering where Centre Court grass fits into the diet and how much sweeter it tastes compared to the disappointment of Roland Garros? NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I was assured that's it's glutenfree, it's not processed, completely organic and natural and I could eat it. So I had no reaction. It was obviously nice to repeat this tradition and doing the thing I do after I win the title here in Wimbledon. As I said on the court, when I was a child, dreaming of winning Wimbledon, it was something I always wanted to do in my celebration. I picked that. I hope people are not annoyed by that. Q. Today you seemed to be less nervous than in some other matches during the previous week. Is it true, or were you nervous? What was your reaction when you lost those seven set points in the second set? Did you start thinking, The way he played against Murray, if he plays against me, can be a problem? NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, coming into the court today, knowing that it's finals of Wimbledon and I'm going to play against the most successful player of all time in this tournament, I think just that fact makes you nervous. Obviously the importance of the match, pressure is always present. I think it hits the highest point right at the pinnacle of this tournament and the finals, especially if you're playing a top rival. Of course, he played amazing tennis throughout the entire tournament. He deserved to be there. I knew that he's not going to drop his level too much. He's going to make me earn every point. I'm going to have to win. You know, he's not going to lose; I'm going to have to win if I want to lift that trophy. I had that in the back of my mind. Obviously it's easier to say to yourself and kind of convince that you can do it and believe and actually do it on the court. He continuously puts a lot of pressure on you.  Especially on the grass, he plays one, two game very quickly, chips and charges, just takes away the time, which Andy and I need. We are baseline players and we need a little bit more time. We are not as talented as Roger. Wins his service games in 30 seconds. But, again, I managed to sustain that pressure that he put on my service games, especially in the first set. Second set tiebreak, yeah, it was frustrating obviously not to be able to close it out. Very, very frustrated on the changeover because I knew that I cannot let this happen against Roger in the finals of Wimbledon because this might be my last chance in the match. But, again, managed to regroup, had a little bit more time, especially in the rain delay. That's where I got my thoughts together and went back to the basics and played a really, really good match after that. Q. You mention your childhood. Your childhood coach spoke to you about the storms and the calms. Today you tasted grass. A few weeks ago you tasted defeat. Talk about dealing and managing the ups and downs of this sport. NOVAK DJOKOVIC: This sport, yeah, makes you recover very fast. Within a couple weeks you really need to get your things together and motivate yourself to be able to play on a high level in another Grand Slam. From this perspective now, it's actually good that we have Wimbledon just few weeks after Roland Garros 'cause I had pretty much two years same situation, where I lose in four sets, in a tough match, in the finals of Roland Garros, against Nadal last year, against Wawrinka this year. Obviously, disappointed and heartbroken. But if there is one thing that I learned in the sport is to recover fast and to leave things behind me and move on. So actually from this perspective, it's good that we have Wimbledon just around the corner where, you know, you come here and you feel the importance of this event. It's the biggest event in sport. You know, you can't think about what happened in French Open or what happened few weeks before. You just need to look forward. If we don't have Wimbledon a few weeks after French Open, maybe it would be different situation. But it is the way it is. It's actually pretty good for me. Q. There were many obstacles during these two weeks. Maybe people were thinking Federer was the favorite going into this final. At the end of the match when you celebrated the victory, was it maybe also that you proved again people wrong? NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I just proved to myself that I can do it again. I think that's the most. Obviously I'm an emotional guy. I go through tough moments in the match like he does, like anybody does really. It's no different. But, you know, I express myself sometimes negatively unfortunately, but I also like to show fist pumps, encourage myself to get moving. But, you know, you can't do too much. Obviously in these particular matches you need to be calm, because only the quiet mind, serene mind wins the match. In the end when I finished the last point, I took out everything that was in me. I still obviously don't realize, you know, what kind of achievement it is. And it's a great achievement. Even though it's the third title here, it feels like first. I think tomorrow is a new day. Now it's a time to celebrate. Q. Consecutive Wimbledon titles against Roger Federer, the player you've called the best of all time. You've competed on an even level with maybe the two best players, definitely the two best players of the era. In your career, what are your thoughts on what you've accomplished to date and what do you think is ahead? NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I think there is no reason not to be satisfied with what I have achieved. In contrary, I'm thrilled and very proud with all the success that I had so far in the career, everything I reached. If you would ask me as a 14‑year‑old back in Serbia trying to find my way, you know, that this is how I'm going to end up at 28, of course I would sign the deal and take it right away. There were a couple of Grand Slam finals that I think I could have won. But, again, having said that, everything happens for a reason. I try to learn from every experience, especially the ones that don't end up victorious for me. I'm going to keep going. I'm 28. I feel good. I don't feel old. I have hopefully many more years in front of me. I'm going to try to push my own limits and see how far I can go really with titles and with myself playing on this high level. Q. What has Boris said to you about your achievement of his mark of winning three Wimbledon titles? Now nine Grand Slam titles, ahead of legends of the game like Agassi and Lendl, how does that feel? NOVAK DJOKOVIC: He hasn't told me anything yet, referring to that fact. Obviously we shared very joyful and positive happy moments in the locker room after the match where we hugged. As a team we tried to grasp on everything that we have achieved, especially during this couple weeks, being able to bounce back mentally after Roland Garros, a tough loss there, and to win this trophy which makes it even bigger. Right now whenever you're winning, obviously everybody feels happy and it's easy to say positive things. But in the tough times, Boris was there, as was the entire team. They were encouraging me to keep going, supporting me. That's a unity that keeps us together and allows us to experience these beautiful moments. Q. To be able to beat Roger back‑to‑back years here, as much as you revere him and this place, how do you describe your 'wow' factor? Is there a party going on inside of you right now? NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Little bit. But, as I said, it's so fresh that it's hard for me to gather all the thoughts and take out the impression and just sincere feeling of what I have achieved right now. I'm extremely proud. It's a huge relief. That's the first feeling that I will feel after the tournament. Whether I'm winning it or losing it, in finals, or whenever I finish, it's just a huge relief. Especially in the Grand Slams, you know, you play every second day, but you have to encounter many different things on and off the court. It's biggest events in sport. So many people asking you different questions. There's expectations from yourself, your team, people around you. Yeah, you know, you need to be able to accept it and live with that. It's not easy because it takes a lot of energy from you and from every aspect. So that's the first thing, is a relief, it's over. And obviously it's nicer when you get to have the trophy with it, as well (smiling). Q. The BBC ran a poll just before the match started saying 75% of the people here were supporting Roger. Does that bother you at all? You could sense that in the stands. Do you think maybe now with your track record, they might get behind you? NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, look, it doesn't. It doesn't. I expected that coming into the match. I think it's normal because Roger is a champion on and off the court. He's a very likable guy. He's somebody that has played on this level for so many years, many more years than me. Not judging just by the results, but his character, personality. He's done all the right things to get that support. More or less anywhere I play against Roger, it's the same. So it's just like that. I have to accept it. I have to work and earn majority of the support maybe one day. Q. In the last game you hit two return winners. You roared basically after that second one which set up the match point. This is a surface and tournament where Federer has dominated. To be able to do that, what does it take and what does it feel like to do that? NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, it takes a little bit of everything. I think recognizing the moment, having the good intuition, following your instincts of where the serve is going to go, being in the right balance.  I mean, it's not that easy, especially with Roger's precision and accuracy he had throughout the entire match. I mean, I've done it few times. I've done it in the right moment. I roared because I felt like that's the moment. Now is the time for me to close this match out. It feels obviously good when you make a return winner out of Roger's serve on the grass, but it doesn't happen too often. Q. If it weren't for one match, you might be going to the US Open with Serena going for a Grand Slam, calendar‑year Grand Slam. Talk about the US Open. NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Serena, I look forward to meet her tonight. Maybe I have a dance with her, if they allow me. She has achieved something incredible. So much respect for her. She's an unbelievable competitor. I hope for her that she makes the Golden Slam. She deserves that. For me, I'm going to try to follow her lead, try to repeat everything she does. Obviously it's huge confidence boost prior to the last Grand Slam of the year, for me winning in Wimbledon and having two Grand Slams this year. If I would lose this final today, obviously the situation would be entirely different and the approach would be entirely different. I'm just glad I managed to make it. Now I need some time off, vacation, relaxing. It's important to keep that balance in life, just gather all the possible energy for hard court season, try to build up on the tournaments before, then come into the US Open and trying to close out the Grand Slam season in best possible way. Q. The extra week between Paris and here means that your wedding anniversary is now with Wimbledon. NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Today. It's actually today. Q. How does Jelena feel about the new scheduling and that you get to bring the nice shiny trophy back home? NOVAK DJOKOVIC: One year ago I won the trophy, and on this day, we got married in the church, started a new life together. It's really an amazing chapter of my life that I'm trying to enjoy as much as I can. Of course, becoming parents in October was another great dimension of love and energy for us. Got us even closer together. So obviously when you're going for annual holidays with the Wimbledon trophy, it's slightly different than when you're not. But I think, you know, whether I'm winning or losing, she's always there. Family's always there. When I go back home, I'm not a tennis player anymore. I'm a father and a husband. That's a kind of balance that I think allows me to play this well. Ever since I got married and became a father, I haven't lost many matches, I won many tournaments. I suggest that to every player, Get married, have kids, let's enjoy this. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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