The only one who can beat Djokovic is himself – Eye of the Coach #13
Patrick Mouratoglou admits that it will be very difficult for anyone to beat Novak Djokovic at the 2020 US Open – but thinks it is possible.
“The only one who can beat Djokovic is himself,” said the Frenchman in the new episode of Eye of the Coach.
In the absence of the injured Roger Federer and the missing Rafael Nadal, the tournament’s top seed is expected to cruise to victory as he chases his 18th Grand Slam title – and Mouratoglou certainly expects to see him in the final next weekend.
So far, he has dropped only one set – against Great Britain’s Kyle Edmund in the second round – and has already knocked out a fellow seed, in Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff in round three.
He is doubtless going in to his fourth-round match against 20th seed Pablo Carreno Busta on a wave of confidence – but Mouratoglou thinks that could be a risk.
The coach pointed out that the Serbian actually has a tendency to be overconfident at times.
“It can hurt him – he can lose focus because sometimes he’s too good.”
Mouratoglou also said that the world No 1 can be affected by pressure.
“When he’s counterpunching, aggressive, that’s when he’s the best – he’s the best in the world and unbeatable. When he starts to stand back and a bit more passive, he’s beatable. It’s extremely difficult – but he’s beatable!”
