Djokovic confesses before his debut at the US Open: “I had two weeks to really train and put my body and mind in the right state, prepared for what is coming”

Novak Djokovicprepared to compete in the US Open for the twentieth time in his career, He expressed his pride in continuing to “represent the old generation.”

“I’m very proud of that. Obviously, longevity was always one of my goals when I was younger: to try to have a long career, have more opportunities at the Grand Slams and stay healthy enough to be able to perform for as many years as possible“said the Serbian at a press conference in Flushing Meadows.

“So it’s great to know that I’m playing Grand Slam tournaments again 20 years in a row. I saw somewhere that there were three or four of us playing, I think, back in 2006. I think it was Wawrinka, maybe Monfils, and Cilic. So it’s nice, in a way, to go back in time“he added.

“In fact, I think I played my first US Open against Monfils, a five-set match, and here we are 20 years later“We both continue fighting and representing the older generation,” concluded the Serbian.

Djokovic, winner of 24 majors, arrives in New York after an elimination in the first round in Cincinnati.

“The truth is, I don’t like early eliminations in any tournament, but they gave me time to prepare for the US Open in the most appropriate way. I had almost two weeks, actually two weeks, to really train and get my body and mind in the right stateprepared for what is coming,” he said.

“If you ask me if I’m ready, I feel like I am, the best I can be, but It’s one thing to train and another to go out to Arthur Ashe Stadium and play the best of five sets.. You don’t normally play best-of-five in practice sessions. We’ll see how it goes. The opening matches are always quite difficult for me, especially in recent years. Hopefully I can overcome the first obstacle and grow from there,” he continued.