Following Nokak Djokovic’s 6-3 6-4 defeat to Andy Murray at the ATP Finals and failing to reclaim the world No. 1 ranking he had at the end of last year, his coach Boris Becker suggested that Serb could be suffering from the absence of main rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
“He didn’t have any opponents anymore,” the German tennis legend told CNN’s World Sports Show. “His time was with Rafael Nadal, with Roger Federer. Andy Murray was always the fourth guy,” Boris Becker said, adding that Andy Murray is “showing something he hasn’t showed before.”
Roger Federer has been battling injuries the entire year. He had arthroscopic surgery on a torn meniscus in his left knee on Feb. 3, which forced him to miss tournaments in Rotterdam, Dubai and Indian Wells. In July, he announced that he would be missing the Olympic Games in Rio, as well as the remainder of the season due to the need for extensive rehabilitation on the same knee.
Rafael Nadal has likewise battled a chronic injury for most of the year. A wrist injury forced him out of the French Open last May—the same injury that ruled him out of a slew of events including the Aegon Championships and Wimbledon.
As noted by a CNN report, Novak Djokovic had a hot start to 2016 before the injury bug bit his chief rivals. He won six of his first nine tournaments, which included his first title at Roland Garros.
“The first six months were outstanding,” said Boris Becker. “His pinnacle was winning the French Open and winning four majors in a row. It hasn’t been done since 1969 by a player called Rod Laver.”
Apart from losing his main competitors, Boris Becker also cited the birth of Novak Djokovic’s first child for the lack of focus on tennis, but added that losing the No. 1 ranking could re-motivate the Serb for next season.
