World No. 1 Novak Djokovic shocked everyone with a big announcement on 27th March. Nole announced his split with longtime coach Goran Ivanisevic having spent six years together. While the official reason wasn’t given fully, new rumors claim the two had a massive argument in Indian Wells.
In an Instagram post he shared to announce his partnership end with Ivanisevic, Djokovic hinted at ‘ups and downs’ but didn’t go into much detail.
But as per Craig Shapiro, a former member of Andre Agassi‘s team and now a famous podcast host, the two Balkans had major disagreements. Shapiro recently put out a tweet claiming the two had a rift during a practice session in Indian Wells. Reportedly, Ivanisevic wasn’t happy with Djokovic’s efforts.
Been told that everything officially fell apart after a big argument over Novak’s effort in practice in Indian Wells. Shapiro wrote on X
Similarly, Shapiro’s tweet from the previous week also claimed scheduling disagreements between the two. The American hinted Djokovic was ready to skip this year’s Wimbledon to stay fresh for the 2024 Paris Olympics. The singles gold is the only missing title from the Serb’s gigantic trophy cabinet.
Novak Djokovic missed out on the Calendar Slam in 2021 due to his Olympic ambition claimed Goran Ivanisevic
During the 2021 season, Djokovic simply looked unbeatable. The Serb clinched Major titles at the Australian Open, French Open, and Wimbledon. As the Tokyo Olympics were postponed from 2020 to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Djokovic went chasing the illustrious gold medal.
Having won the singles bronze back in 2008, he remained laser-focused on winning the gold. Despite warnings from his coaching team and father Srdjan, Nole insisted on signing up for Mixed Doubles as well. As he was nursing an injury on his shoulder, his fate turned against him.
He lost the singles bronze medal match and had to forfeit his mixed doubles bronze medal match as well. With his recovery time cut short, he was completely exhausted at the US Open that year, losing the finals to Daniil Medvedev in straight sets.
Many including Ivanisevic believed that had Djokovic skipped the Olympics or played just singles, he could have won all four Majors that year. Something similar has potentially happened this year as well if Shapiro’s claims are to be believed.
First of all, he’s very proud and he loves to play for his country. Every Davis Cup he’s played, every Olympics. No one could stop him from playing in the Olympics. I don’t think he made a mistake. I just think he made a mistake playing the mixed doubles. That was not necessary, because, in the end, he was tired. He didn’t even play for third or fourth place. I don’t think that because of this he lost the final of the US Open. Ivanisevic had said in his 2022 interview with Ubitennis.
While Ivanisevic is yet to comment anything on the split, Djokovic sure did put it out as a mutual decision. With no replacement announced yet, it will be interesting to see how Nole gets out of this situation.
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