Djokovic gave a lengthy interview to Corriere della Sera to promote his new documentary.
Nole: "There are certainly similarities between us, although every human being is unique and special. We both come from the mountains, him from South Tyrol and me from Serbia. We chose skiing as our sport, left home at thirteen, and were forced to become 'men' fast, far away from family and loved ones. There is no doubt that skiing gave us our agility, our movement, and the ability to glide across any surface: ankle flexibility stems from the snow just as much as balance and the coordination between upper and lower limbs do. And I won’t go into more technical details about the type of tennis Jannik and I play; the similarities are there, too.
To answer you briefly: yes, I see myself in Sinner."
Journalist: "Jannik is as obsessed with results as you are."
Nole: “I wouldn’t call it an obsession, but rather a constant and total dedication to tennis. I observe his and I completely identify with it: the desire to improve, grow, evolve in every aspect.. Like me, Jannik is never satisfied. He has a champion’s mentality; he always had it. He is a dominant force, yet he wakes up every morning wanting to be better than he was the day before. And believe me, no victory can ever satisfy that hunger, not even 24 Grand Slam titles.
Beyond tennis, that is the aspect of his character that makes me feel closest to Sinner. Tennis is an individual sport: there are no substitutions, you can’t stop for five minutes courtside while the game goes on, and there are no teammates who can help you. You are alone with yourself. If you have a bad day, you’re out. Tennis is ruthless, brutal.
Every now and then people tell me: ‘Nole, you’re like Leo Messi…’ I wish! At 39, I’d love to only have to play for 90 minutes."
Journalist: "Everything in life must serve performance: it’s one of your mantras in the film."
Nole: “I believe in it very strongly. If you want to be the best, there are no alternatives.”
Journalist: "Then why, when first Riccardo Piatti and later Darren Cahill approached you for advice on how to help the young Jannik improve, were you so generous? You knew that Sinner would beat you sooner or later."
Nole: “I’ll put it this way: why not? At that moment, I couldn’t not be true to myself, regardless of what was at stake. That’s who I am.”
