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DAVIS CUP FINALS

November 21, 2019

Novak Djokovic

Paris, France

SERBIA 2, France 0

DJOKOVIC/Paire 6-3, 6-3

THE MODERATOR: Questions in English.

Q. This is Janko's last competition. We know a lot about him as a player. Can you take a moment and talk to us about him as a man and a friend. You have to one great story you can share.
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Plenty of good stories for you guys.

Q. One you can share.
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I remember I was I think 11 years old, 10, 11, he was 14, and we played this practice match at the mountain where I grew up, and he actually grew up as well and his family very close to that mountain. So we got to see each other when we were younger with our families. Our fathers were friends and knew each other well.

And I remember he was toying with me. And at the time, obviously he's older, but at the time he was the best player in the world, you know. Under 14, 16, 18, he was the best junior I think we ever had as a country.

And he was, he was just different. He was coloring his hair, he had piercings, he had tattoos, and still does have a lot of tattoos. I think he was kind of a rebel always. He wanted things his way.

That's something I respect a lot and like about him, the fact that he's very authentic, very honest, very transparent. He tells you straight up, you know, what's going on or what's on his mind. He doesn't really try to go around or please someone just because, you know, it's hard to swallow the truth. But he's a very direct guy.

But loves the game. And he was one of the most passionate players to play for his country that I have ever seen. His commitment to this team and the Davis Cup competition was tremendous. He deserves, he deserves every credit for that and.

Obviously it's emotional week for him, for us. We've been progressing as a team very well. He won his doubles yesterday, he's been playing now again with Viktor. And we're just glad that he has also decided to retire, you know, in the Davis Cup so we could actually all spend a nice week together.

And he's very successful already in transition to his next chapter. He's got a very successful tennis academy, Tipsarevic Tennis Academy, in several different locations in Serbia, in China, in Mexico. He's been spreading around the world with his philosophy, his concept, which I think is different from other academies that I have seen.

And you know, he's a long-time friend of mine. And, you know, I definitely wish him all the very best in the next chapters. We'll get to spend a lot of time. I think he's going to stay involved in tennis one way or another through his academy, through coaching as well, mentoring, and so forth.

But it was a hell of a ride with him, for sure. We shared some amazing moments (smiling).

Q. I wanted to follow up on something you said yesterday, that you think maybe the ATP Cup and Davis Cup should merge and come together.
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Yeah.

Q. You suggested a week in September perhaps after the US Open.
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Yeah.

Q. The elephant in the room is that the Laver Cup currently occupies that place in the calendar. So I was wondering what are your thoughts about the long-term future of that competition and its place in the calendar and in this discussion about team competitions? Do you think other team competitions should take priority over it?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, Laver Cup is very important for tennis. I think it has proven in the last three years that by attracting the best tennis players in the world and also the legends of our sport. And presenting a unique concept to tennis, which is very similar also copy/paste to Ryder Cup in golf, is something that has generated a lot of interest and a lot of benefits for tennis.

That is the reason why it's in the ATP calendar, even though it does not have points. But it is regarded as an important competition for the future of tennis. And I definitely think the Laver Cup should be supported by the tennis community.

But at the same time, you know, when we talk about team competitions, you know, Davis Cup has always been the one that stands out. It is the most historic one. And unfortunately, in the last three years that also I have been part of this kind of negotiations and conversations that were happening between ITF and ATP and Kosmos and different sides that were involved, there was just no, unfortunately, solution or no deal for the merger of the two events.

But from the very beginning the desire from both sides was always there, and it is still there. Which is a positive thing.

And I, you know, am going to repeat what I said yesterday: I think this is the most ideal way to go forward for tennis. I don't think the two competitions can coexist in the same format six weeks apart. Obviously, we have different elements that we have to take into consideration with scheduling. And as you mentioned, you know, Laver Cup is in September.

So it's not easy, definitely. There's going to be some downsides. But when you make a change, this is inevitable. You can't have everything super positive and ideal.

So there has to be some also sacrifice, I guess, on the way. You know, what is going to be sacrificed or who is going to be sacrificed or whether that's going to happen at all, I don't know. I don't know right now to tell you what's going to happen.

I'm just, you know, a part of the council of ATP and someone that, you know, is expressing his own opinion. But that can be only my own opinion, maybe the leadership of ATP and ITF have something different on their minds.

But so far, what I have experienced in the negotiations, conversations with both sides is that they all understand the merge would be the most ideal way for our sport.

Q. Novak, just following up on that. Like you mentioned, you're part of the council and these are your own thoughts. Rafa has also suggested a merger would be the right thing going forward. So have you had any discussions with Rafa and Roger regarding this and the other members? If the merger doesn't happen over the next few years, maybe two or three years, they are still going to the Davis Cup and the ATP Cup separate. What would be the ideal way to improve the Davis Cup in its present condition? Because the scheduling yesterday was pretty bad in the sense that the match took past 4 a.m. Suggestions on how to improve it in its current state?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Yeah. Well, I will start with your first question. I did not speak with Rafa and Roger about this because the decision was made already some time ago about, you know, ITF and Kosmos deciding that they're going to change the format. ATP was developing their own team cup that is happening in January. So it was kind of already very clear what the situation is.

But I think, you know, in Australia we will see how the ATP Cup will turn out to be. I think it's going to be success anyway because there's a lot of top players going to be there because it is prior to Australian Open. I think it's time anyway for, first of all, the heads of ATP and ITF to talk about this.

I am going to speak with Roger and Rafa and ask their opinions, of course. We are also part of the council, the three of us. But we don't make decisions. People I think have the wrong idea that we three make all the calls in tennis, which is not true. Of course, our opinions are valued, but the way the structure is set up, it's the boards and, of course, different entities that make decisions and the leaders of those entities.

In terms of your second question, yes, I heard about the 4 a.m. finish. Look, I think it was always going to happen, knowing that you have 18 teams that you are trying to -- you're trying to squeeze everything in in one week on three courts; center court, of course, being the main court.

You know, with the rest between matches and the singles players, double players, ceremonies, and all these different things that are part of the protocol, it's always going to be very complicated to get everything done on time, you know. And of course the long matches.

I don't know if you were here yesterday, I don't think so. But I said in terms of -- one of the ideas was maybe you can have an elite eight tournament, finals, you know, like 8 teams rather than 18. And then have qualification groups played, you know, in different places around the world.

Hosting nations of those groups, which I think would actually allow the hosting nations or actually more nations to have a hosting tie, an opportunity to play at home. Which many players actually complain about in this format, that you don't have a 99.9 chance -- teams -- percent of teams don't have an opportunity to play at home anymore.

It's going to be Madrid this year, Madrid next year, and then another place. Only one nation will have an opportunity to be the host, which is a big advantage. If you see the last couple of days, the interest for Spanish ties was of course a full stadium and the others not so much. Of course, as we are going towards the weekend I guess the attendance will increase.

But when you are playing at home it's different. Then the hosting nation has more support, which can be deciding in this kind of competition.

Q. Back to the tie today, did you expect such an easy tie against France?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, maybe from your perspective it was easy, but from ours definitely not. We still have to win matches. Tsonga is in good shape the last couple of months. Him playing indoors is one of the toughest opponents to play because he loves to play indoors. He's had more success throughout his career indoors. And with that big serve, a big weapon of his, it's never easy to play him.

But I thought Krajinovic played one of the best matches that I have seen him play ever. Very solid. Had so many opportunities, all the time pressuring Tsonga's serve. He was just playing really, really well.

Credit to him because also he gave me wings and a little bit of a relief coming into my match that I played against Benoit. Which I was expecting to, honestly, that they are going to have Benoit instead of Gael.

I haven't played Benoit in a long time. I knew that he's got a big serve, a lot of talent. He's got a lot of abilities to do different things. But he's unpredictable as well.

So I think I was solid. I was just focused and just trying to stay in the match mentally as well every single point, which probably decided the winner in the end.

And this is the most ideal scenario for us. Winning both ties after singles and not being really pressured by the doubles, which would be a complicated thing for us against France, which has the best doubles in the world at the moment.

So we're coming into quarters now and playing against Russia tomorrow. That's definitely one of the best quality teams here. It's going to be a big challenge.

Q. Novak, obviously with this format there's a lot of permutations and stuff to determine who goes to the quarters.
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Yes.

Q. How important is it that you topped the group? And were you conscious of that fact going in that if you're not top of the group and you go in as best second maybe Spain could have been your quarterfinal opponent. How important is it that you avoided that situation?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, I think it was always our goal to pass the group. And that's why I was emphasizing the importance of winning doubles against Japan yesterday. You know, 3-0, coming into this day, it gives you a little bit more relief because we knew if we win one match, maybe another set or, you know, we're already through, even if we lose the tie against France today.

I didn't really pay too much attention to calculations because, you know, I've -- you know, I've never had a really good experience with calculating and playing tennis. I leave that to somebody else.

And for us, it was important just to win every match that we play, and we did that after singles. I think both Filip and I are in very good form. There are a lot of quality teams here, but I think we have had a perfect score so far with winning all the sets and hopefully we can keep going.

THE MODERATOR: Questions in Serbian.

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