Tennis icon Jimmy Connors has backed Novak Djokovic’s withdrawal from the Canadian Open and revealed what he feels the Serb must do before the US Open.
Djokovic was one of 18 players to pull out before the Masters 1000 event in Toronto, with fellow top six stars Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz and Jack Draper also withdrawing.
The great Serbian has not played since his Wimbledon semi-final loss Sinner, during which he was visibly hampered by an injury.
The 38-year-old is expected to return to action at the Cincinnati Masters, which will begin on August 7. Djokovic will then try again to become the oldest Grand Slam singles champion in history at the US Open as he chases a record-extending 25th major.
During an episode of his Advantage Connors podcast with his son Brett, Connors was asked if the high number of withdrawals on Canada were a result of players protecting their bodies.
“Yeah, especially if you look at a guy like Djokovic, you know, he’s gotta monitor his time and the effort that he puts in, because he is the older player on the circuit now,” said the eight-time Grand Slam champion.
“And if he wants to bring his game up and rise to the top when it supposedly is the most meaningful, which would be the US Open, he’s gotta monitor what’s best, but also be able to play some matches too going into the tournament, so you don’t just go in flat.
“But a lot of the other guys go into the 12 day events, that is a lot of tennis. The only good thing is they’re not three out of five set matches, you know, they’re two out of three.
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“I can see where a lot of the top players that are playing every week and getting to the semis and finals every week — that’s telling on you mentally and physically.
“I mean, every match should be important, but there’s some results that are your legacy — and that’s Wimbledon and the US Open in my opinion.”
The former world No 1 also shed light on his approach to scheduling between Wimbledon and the US Open during his own career.
“I mean, after Wimbledon, I would take a week off. I’d have to go home and get my clothes clean and get ready to play,” Connors recalled.
“But back then, it was a different time. I was young and there was not so much money in the game, so I was trying to make a living too, so I would go and play. But I was able to monitor my schedule to the point where I never felt like I was burnt out.
“I would come back and take a week off [after Wimbledon] and then I would go and play Washington, or Cincinnati, or Indianapolis, or whatever, and then I’d take a week off. Or I’d play two tournaments and take a week off.
“I was striving for the US Open, but that was my schedule. Once Wimbledon was over, I was training for Wimbledon the next year. Once US Open was over, I was training for the US Open the next year. Everything else just fit in between.”
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