By Randy Walker
@TennisPublisher
With Wimbledon in the rear-view mirror, all eyes now focus on the U.S. Open that starts with the qualifying rounds in New York on August 22 and the main draw starting August 28. Following his disappointing loss to Carlos Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final, that ended his dream of winning a Grand Slam this year as well as a record-tying fifth straight and eighth overall Wimbledon title, Novak Djokovic could be deflated heading into the final major, also with the all-time record men’s major title victories already in his pocket.
Not so, say John McEnroe and Patrick McEnroe.
“I actually think this is going to give Djokovic, as if he needs it, motivation, because the fact that he’s lost a big match,” said Patrick McEnroe on ESPN following the men’s singles final. “He said he’s won a lot of tight matches here, particularly here at Wimbledon. I think this actually will help him over the course, for the next couple of years. Obviously he’s disappointed, as he said, to lose this, but I think it helps him just stay motivated to keep going after this. Now this guy’s taking his title here.”
John McEnroe suggested that Djokovic will be extra motivated to win the U.S. Open after he has had a string of three years of unfortunate appearances there. He was prevented from playing in the event last year due to his COVID vaccine status that prevented him from entering in the United States. In 2021, he fell one match shy of completing a Grand Slam with a disappointing straight-set loss to Daniil Medvedev in the final, while in 2020, he was disqualified from the tournament in a fourth round match with Pablo Carreno Busta when he inadvertadley hit a ball that struck a linesperson.
“Also, Novak not being allowed to play last year, and back finally added intrigue and he was defaulted just three years ago there,” said John McEnroe.
Said ESPN’s Chris Fowler, “The plot line has changed because Alcaraz will take the No. 1 ranking to New York and instead of Djokovic chasing the calendar slam, it’ll be Alcaraz trying to defend his title off of the heels of this performance.”
Despite hard courts being the best surface for Djokovic, he has only won the title in New York three times – the same amount of times he has won at Roland Garros in the Rafael Nadal era. He will be making his 17th appearance in New York this coming August.
If you enjoyed the commentary and banter of John and Patrick McEnroe during Wimbledon, you will love the opportunity to hang out with them on a exclusive safari trip to Tanzania this coming December. For more info, go to www.EpicTanzaniaTour.com
