It was not the Novak mindset – Eye of the Coach #31

In the latest instalment of The Eye of the Coach, Patrick Mouratoglou turns his attention to Sunday’s Roland-Garros final between Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic – and wonders why the world No 1 wasn’t prepared to compete properly.

“Of course Rafa played his match, and that’s a good thing about him,” Mouratoglou said. “You are never disappointed. He always plays his match. Whether he wins or loses, he’s always there, he’s always starting the match being solid and seeing what’s happening, and if he needs to step up, he can step up.”

‘Step up’

The coach says that something just felt wrong about Djokovic’s performance in Paris on Sunday.

“That’s exactly what Novak didn’t do from the start,” he said. “You could feel something wrong because he was looking for easy points, like trying drop shots here and there – like four drop shots in the first game. He was not prepared to rally and go for it and hit winners to give himself the chance to win that match.”

What was the issue with Djokovic on Sunday, or was it simply a case of Djokovic being too good? Mouratoglou believes it just wasn’t meant to be for Djokovic.

“He didn’t enter the court playing with the same mindset as the one we know. It happens to everyone, that’s why tennis is interesting because it’s not only about entering and playing your match there are a lot of other aspects. The mental aspect is a huge aspect.”