'That man destroyed a lot of my life': Goran Ivanisevic's honest take on the Wimbledon rivalry with Pete Sampras

Former world No. 2 Goran Ivanisevic recalled the Wimbledon finals he lost to Pete Sampras, stating that the American "destroyed a lot of my life" during one of the greatest rivalries of the 90s. The 14-time Grand Slam champion held a 12-6 record against the Croatian.

Ivanisevic has stood out as one of the most successful coaches of recent times, partnering with Novak Djokovic to win a total of eight Grand Slams together. The Croatian, however, had a notable career back in the 90s, where he constantly ran into the legendary former world No. 1.

The Croatian coach can boast a Wimbledon title from 2001, though he had to go through a long journey to get there after losing three finals at the All England Club: first in 1992 to Andre Agassi and then in 1994 and 1998, both against Sampras. "That man destroyed a lot of my life, dreams, sleep, nerves. I can't forgive him for that," the Croatian stated.

A winning partnership: Ivanisevic on the pressure of coaching Novak Djokovic

The Croatian coach recalled the years he worked with the 24-time Grand Slam champion between 2018 and 2024. The 2001 Wimbledon champion joined Novak's team in 2018 and became his head coach in 2022, ending their collaboration with 12 Grand Slam titles—eight of them with Ivanisevic as head coach.

“Well, when you train Novak Djokovic, anything other than winning the title at any tournament is a failure. That's a lot of pressure to deal with," the 53-year-old told Blick in a recent interview. "Novak is very demanding. Something new has to happen every day, he always wants to get better. If you can't handle it, it's better not to take the job at all. The language certainly helped me—we had no barrier between us."

Nevertheless, Ivanisevic had great praise for his former player. Djokovic himself stated that Ivanisevic "is part of his family" and that their relationship goes beyond his role as a coach. The former world No. 2 spoke about Djokovic's present, where he is still struggling with age while he continues to seek more Grand Slam titles. "Novak is special, different, the best. His desire for progress is incredible. You can learn a lot from him," commented the former coach of stars like Marin Cilic and Tomas Berdych. "Novak had a discussion with the clock. He's never on time. And everyone knows it; everyone is already used to it."

Ivanisevic’s Recent coaching misfortunes

Ivanisevic continues to be a hot topic in the tennis world with a successful coaching career that makes him one of the most sought-after coaches today. However, the last year hasn't been his best. He just ended a brief association with Stefanos Tsitsipas after only a month, which ended with criticism and cross-declarations.

"I’ve never seen a more unprepared player in my life. With this knee, I’m three times fitter than him. It’s really bad,” Ivanisevic stated a few days before they ended their relationship. "It is very difficult to have dictators and people who speak negatively and you don't feel like they are close to you like family,” Tsitsipas said shortly after the announcement of the split.

Ivanisevic has always been known for his explosive temperament on the tour, with several memorable episodes of emotional ups and downs. As a coach, his strong personality has made its mark.

At the beginning of the year, he had also ended a short coaching relationship in his first foray into the WTA Tour with Elena Rybakina. The Kazakh player decided to end her relationship with Ivanisevic amid controversy over the ban on her previous coach, Stefano Vukov. The 2022 Wimbledon champion decided to re-hire the controversial coach despite him still being banned by the WTA. Amid doubts about the role Ivanisevic would play, the relationship ended after just one month.

We'll have to wait for Ivanisevic's next move, as he's sure to have new coaching appearances in the future. His resume includes Marin Cilic (2013-2016)—with whom he won the 2014 US Open—Tomas Berdych (2016-2017), Milos Raonic (2018-2019), Novak Djokovic (2019-2024), Elena Rybakina (2025), and Stefanos Tsitsipas (2025).