Djokovic thought about his own future retirement while at Nadal's farewell ceremony at French Open
Paris (AP): As Novak Djokovic chatted at Court Philippe-Chatrier with his greatest rivals in tennis — Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Andy Murray, all of whom have retired — he couldn't help but think about when his day to walk away might arrive.
“Well, I mean, honestly, I was thinking about my end of the road, as well,” Djokovic said with a smile Monday, a day before he'll play his first-round match at the French Open against Mackie McDonald of the United States.
“But,” Djokovic added moments later with a grin, “I didn't think about the exact date, if that's what you're looking for.”
Federer, Djokovic and Murray made a surprise appearance Sunday at the ceremony to honor Nadal for his 14 championships at Roland-Garros.
Djokovic, who turned 38 last week, won the 100th title of his career over the weekend at the Geneva Open on red clay — something the Serbian called “definitely much needed for my game and confidence level coming into Roland-Garros.”
He is the youngest member of a quartet that combined to collect 69 Grand Slam trophies, and came to be known by some as the Big Four of men's tennis while they dominated the sport for years.
Federer, 43, played his final match in 2021; Murray, 38, stopped after last year's Paris Olympics; Nadal finished up last season and was feted Sunday for his 14 championships at Roland-Garros.
“I was obviously talking to Federer and Murray about their goodbyes and reminiscing and reflecting on the rivalries. And of course, part of me is proud that I'm still there, that I'm still going," said Djokovic, who owns a record 24 major titles, including three in Paris. "But at the same time, I was, and I still am, a bit sad that they're all gone, because those guys were my greatest motivations of why I competed so intensely and for so long.”
Part of what went through Djokovic's mind on Sunday was an appreciation for the way Nadal was celebrated.
And Djokovic also pondered what might happen when he decides to stop.
“Rafa deserved what he got yesterday in full intensity of its glory. ... Each one of us dreams of being remembered in such a way and celebrated, of course,” Djokovic said. “I do wish one day that I can get that kind of goodbye from the world of tennis, for sure.”
He got emotional listening to Nadal's speech and seeing the way the Spaniard's relatives and team members reacted.
“It was a really heartwarming moment,” Djokovic said. “Even though we were the fiercest rivals, it's that personal touch that is out there when you kind of spill your heart out on the court, as he did yesterday. It's almost impossible it doesn't touch you deeply.”
Djokovic was briefly coached by Murray this season until splitting recently, and Djokovic said it was a mutual decision.
He also said Murray teased that it was only after they went their separate ways that Djokovic earned his first title of the season by winning in Geneva on Saturday.
“I,” Djokovic said, "didn't take that as a joke.”
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Two injuries, one DNF, a DQ as India end messy World Relays campaign
Gaborone (Botswana) (PTI): Amoj Jacob and Ragul Kumar got injured during the men's 4x400m and 4x100 races respectively as India ended their World Athletics Relays campaign in disappointment on the second day of competitions here on Sunday.
The Indian camp had high hopes of making the 2027 World Championships in the men's 4x400m relay but the team did not finish (DNF) the race as Jacob suffered cramps and pulled out of the race after taking the baton from the first leg runner Dharamveer Choudhary. Rajesh Ramesh and Vishal TK were to run in the third and fourth legs.
Those teams which could not qualify for the 2027 Beijing World Championships by reaching the final round of each of the six relay events on Saturday were given another chance in the second qualification round on Sunday.
The top two teams in each of the two heats (in all six relay events) booked the Beijing ticket on Sunday.
India will now have to try and qualify for the World Championships through the Top Lists of the World Athletics, which is a long and tedious process.
In the men's 4x100m race, third leg runner Ragul Kumar fell down the track after failing to hand over the baton inside the exchange zone to fourth leg runner Gurindervir Singh, which clearly showed the lack of coordination among the runners.
Harsh Santosh Raut and Animesh Kujur ran the first two legs.
The Indian quartet was disqualified and Kumar was seen being taken away from the Field of Play with the help of the volunteers.
It was a comedy of errors in the case of the women's 4x100m race, which saw the baton being dropped during an exchange between first leg runner Tamanna and second runner Nithya Gandhe, though the Indians finished the race in 53.09 seconds.
Gandhe started running quite a distance, but after realising that the baton was not in her hand, she turned and ran back to pick it up.
The only silver-lining for the Indian contingent was the national record time in the mixed 4x100m relay race, though the quartet of Ragul Kumar, Nithya Gandhe, Animesh Kujur and Sneha SS finished sixth in heat number two with a time of 41.35 seconds, bettering the previous national mark of 42.30 seconds set in March in Chandigarh.
The mixed 4x400m relay quartet of Theerthesh P Shetty, Kumari Saloni, Nihal William and Rashdeep Kaur ended at fifth in heat number one with a time of 3 minutes and 19.40 seconds.
On Saturday, all the five Indian relay teams had failed to make it to the respective final rounds and thus missed out on the 2027 World Championships berths.
