Novak Djokovic named the ‘master’ in key area as tennis pundit backs him to be ‘almost unbeatable’

Novak Djokovic: The Master of the Calendar and Contender for the 2023 Season

Novak Djokovic has been hailed as “the master of the calendar” and tennis pundit Alex Corretja says he is “the biggest contender” to win the final two titles of the 2023 season. The world No 1 has been in incredible form as his only defeat since the start of the French Open was a five-set loss to Carlos Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final. Since the beginning of June, he has lifted titles at Roland Garros, the Cincinnati Masters and the US Open. After collecting his 24th Grand Slam trophy with his title run at Flushing Meadows, Djokovic opted to take an extended break as he skipped last week’s Shanghai Masters.

He will only return to action in just over a fortnight at the Paris Masters and former world No 2 Corretja believes the Serbian’s ability to curtail the calendar and then “show up and be ready” is one of his major attributes. “I think Djokovic is the master of the calendar because he knows exactly what he needs to do in every moment,” the two-time French Open runner-up told Eurosport. “But in order to do that, you need to know your body, you need to know your game. You need to know exactly where is your pick, at which moments. So I think Novak does that very well, but at the same time, it’s very difficult because it’s not easy not to compete a month and a half and then show up and be ready to do that. “You need to accept the situation the first few days, that maybe you don’t feel as good because the other players, they’ve been playing a lot and you being home – even if you are practicing – is different.”

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The Paris Masters runs from October 30 to November 5 in Paris-Bercy before the 2023 season comes to a conclusion with the ATP Finals in Turin. Djokovic himself has admitted that he would like to win one of the two remaining ATP tournaments while his “big wish” is to win the Davis Cup Finals with Serbia. Corretja, though, can’t see past the tennis great for the Paris-Bercy and Turin titles. “I think he should be probably one of the biggest contenders or the biggest contender to win the two finals in Turin and in Bercy,” he said. “He’s been playing so well through the whole season that he’s got so much confidence that whenever he steps on the court, I think he feels that if he’s ready, he’s going to be almost unbeatable.”