He is unbeaten on grass since 2018. He wins Wimbledon ever year. On hard court, he seemed to have a lot of „upsets“ (by his standards) in the last years: Olympics, World Tour Finals, US Open…of course he also wins a lot on hc, but on grass he wins everything he plays (which is basically Wimbledon). No upsets.
Is Djokovic better on grass than on hard court?
- Thread starter Hyde
- Start date
I wanted to say about the same, but then I asked myself if this isn't exactly the reason why we should vote "grass".
In the end it's about the relative distance to the field what makes something the best surface for a player. And yet it might be true that just EVERYONE plays better on hardcourt because it's the dominant tour surface and therefore the one they all try to peak on.
It's almost a philosophical question where both answers are "right" in a way and personal preference decides the vote.
I Am Finnish
Bionic Poster
Grass by far
Hitman
Bionic Poster
Well, I am comparing his performance on HC to Grass, so really Novak vs Novak.
Novak himself just recently said that while he has had a lot of success on Centre Court and grass, he still feels the best court for his game and where he feels he plays his best tennis is RLA.
initialize
Hall of Fame
No, because Djokovic definitely isn't better on faster surfaces than slower surfaces. Like the other user said it's due to the weak field (very weak) on grass
That's definitely true. As a single tournament AO is above all. The question is only the average hardcourt compared to grass. The problem is that we actually only have Wimbledon to compare with. There should be 2 or 3 grass masters, so that we would also have an average on grass to compare with.
bostontennis
Rookie
given he cannot play any hard court grand slams, yes, he plays better on grass.
Poisoned Slice
Bionic Poster
Backspin1183
Talk Tennis Guru
Not at all. He just happens to be the only top player who plays great on grass. No more Murray, no more Federer, no Delpo, no Grassdal (declined Dustined Nadal instead).
He is doing exactly what he should, win when the competition isn't strong. It would look bad on him if he didn't take advantage of the weak field.
He is doing exactly what he should, win when the competition isn't strong. It would look bad on him if he didn't take advantage of the weak field.
Lleytonstation
Bionic Poster
He doesn't. Hence his 8 titles with 7 of them at WC.
well he is already goat at ao.
Rafa4LifeEver
G.O.A.T.
He's better at vulturing in what is a vacuum of a field on grass courts.
GabeT
G.O.A.T.
Wimby Goat next
jm1980
Talk Tennis Guru
But he has a stellar record in Australia, and generally does very well indoors
One of Djokovic's problems is the heat and humidity in Flushing Meadows. It's absolutely brutal, and ever since they built the roof, it's become worse. I was there in 2018 (when it wasn't even that hot) and I was sweating buckets just walking around. Yes, this is a fitness issue. Yes, everyone else has to deal with it too. But some people are naturally going to suffer more with heat than others
BGod
G.O.A.T.
I'm not a tennis pro but I work outside. I live Bern to Flushing more than once. Any pro should be able to play there for 3 hours without issue.
jm1980
Talk Tennis Guru
He is visibly bothered by the heat, this has been going on since he started
It's one thing to work outside in the heat, it's quite another to play against someone else in the heat. If you work a little slower than your normal, you won't lose your job or be judged by millions for it. At the very top level, the margins are pretty thin. You only need to be a little worse than your opponent to lose
gadge
Hall of Fame
He did beat rafa in 18 and the same rafa lost to fed in 2019. The only ones he vultured are 21 and 22 which he would’ve won anyway but with a bit more resistance.
socallefty
G.O.A.T.
The gap between him and other players is higher on grass than on hard courts. That’s mainly because very few players know how to move and play well on grass.
Russeljones
Talk Tennis Guru
I wish people here would stop saying "grass" as if Djokovic plays 30 matches on it a year. It is obvious that it is harder to meet him and beat him in 7 total potential matches per year, than it would be in all the hard court matches scattered in the calendar.
Bender
G.O.A.T.
tennis pros are known for meltdowns under the slightest amount of heat though, as @The Blond Blur would be happy to tell you
InsideOut900
Legend
If we separate properly, he was never better on grass than slow HC (AO, IW, Miami, Beijing, Paris, 2012-2015 YEC).
However, since hiring Becker in 2014 and with some natural loss of his explosiveness and attacking game, he became better on grass than fast HC.
However, since hiring Becker in 2014 and with some natural loss of his explosiveness and attacking game, he became better on grass than fast HC.
The Blond Blur
G.O.A.T.
Texas Tennis Fan
Professional
Similar to clay. At least Djokovic had Federer who was another ATG on grass to contend with until 2019. Nadal has the easiest path at RG, though both Wimbledon and RG are similarly weak now.
Mainad
Bionic Poster
His lack of a Queen's or Halle title always strikes me as a bit odd. Except for Borg (who never played grass tune-up events) he is the only multiple Wimbledon champion in the Open Era never to win either of the 2 chief Wimbledon warm-up tournaments (losing finalist at Queen's 2008,2018 and Halle 2009).
Rafa4LifeEver
G.O.A.T.
Federer at Wimbledon was not an ATG level player after 2012
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