Novak Djokovic: Comfortable Being Uncomfortable

This image is a derivative of "I'm in the final!" by Carine06 (CC BY-SA 2.0)

You know how some people are so used to being a certain way that they can't imagine themselves being any other way? 

In one specific sense, Novak Djokovic perfectly fits that category.

No, this is not a criticism - implied or direct. It is merely a reflection of the larger reality that every human being has his or her own set of coping mechanisms and responses to pressure.

After watching Novak Djokovic defeat Roger Federer by an eyelash in Sunday's highly dramatic Wimbledon Final, it seems clear that Djokovic's coping mechanisms and responses to pressure are better than Federer's, better than Rafael Nadal's, and better than just about anyone else who has played men's tennis in the Open Era.

This sport has seen lots of great problem solvers, adjusters, fighters, tacticians, performers, artists, iron men, worker bees, and speedsters in the Open Era. The 'Big 3' - Djokovic, Federer and Nadal - more regularly bring a larger number of elite tennis qualities to the court than most of the male players in this era. No one would call Federer or Nadal "deficient" in their problem-solving capacities and overall resourcefulness.

Yet, with Djokovic winning yet another five-setter against Federer; another five-setter at Wimbledon; and another five-setter in a major final, it is increasingly clearer that while Federer and Nadal have multiple five-set victories to savour at major tournaments (including matches won against each other), Djokovic is the five-set major-tournament king. Federer and Nadal have their share of scalps in close matches at majors, but Djokovic has more. He is the premier close-match winner. He has taken 50-50 matches away from Federer and Nadal more often in the past eight years than Federer or Nadal have taken from him.

This is likely to be the reason why Djokovic wins more major titles by the end of all of their respective careers. If he, at 37, is playing anywhere close to the level Federer is currently demonstrating at age 37, Djokovic should pile up the major titles over the next five years and COMFORTABLY pass Federer's current 20 major trophies.

That word "comfortably" is used purposefully, and, with some sense of irony as well.

Djokovic, in the many close matches he has pulled out of the fire against Federer and Nadal at majors - matches which have transformed the story of tennis and put Djokovic in position to rule this era by the time it ends - has often been uncomfortable.

In some matches, he has been uncomfortable for only one to two sets. 

Think of the 2015 US Open Final against Federer, or his 2011 finals against Nadal at Wimbledon and the US Open. Against Federer on Sunday at the All England Club, he was uncomfortable for three, or three and a half sets. He never was the "drunken master" version who looked uncomfortable in an almost jarring way, but he certainly was uncomfortable.

This point - namely, that Djokovic is comfortable being uncomfortable - might have been lost upon some observers. After all, Djokovic's last three major finals have been clinics, complete showcases of brilliant, efficient tennis. 

In 2018 at Wimbledon over Kevin Anderson, then at the US Open over Juan Martin del Potro, then in Melbourne against Nadal, Djokovic dominated his opponent in a major final. 

Remember that before his 2018 Wimbledon breakthrough, he was injured and/or recovering from his coaching transitions which kept him out of major finals for six straight tournaments, the 2017 Australian Open through 2018 Roland Garros. In 2016, Djokovic hiccuped for one set, then roared past Andy Murray at Roland Garros to win the 'Novak Slam' in four sets. Earlier that year at the Australian Open, Djokovic beat Murray in straight sets.

It really had been a long time since Djokovic was uncomfortable in a major final... but this is how it used to be.

The 2014 Wimbledon Final - also against Federer - was a better-played match than this one in 2019, but it featured the same volatility and similar plot twists. Djokovic blew a lead and allowed Federer to come back in that match. He went through varying levels of form. 

He felt the weight of the moment, but when he had to be great, he was. He saved break-point at 3-3, 30-40, and steered the match around at the very end. He might have been uncomfortable for a time, but he didn't let that discomfort totally hijack his game. He worked through it, survived the worst patches, and rose to the challenge when he had to.

This is how Djokovic has fought through so many difficult periods in his career, so many matches which - if lost - would have prevented him from reaching his goals.

This is not the Djokovic we saw in the three previous major finals he played, dating back to Wimbledon 2018, but this is the Djokovic who took the court on Sunday.

That he once again found a way through the fire - and once again beat Federer in a rollercoaster major-tournament match in which he had to save two match points - affirms that older but still intact thesis about Novak Djokovic: 

He is comfortable being uncomfortable, more than Federer or Nadal, more than any other male tennis player in the Open Era.

Being comfortable when nothing else is going right, when the A-game is elusive, or when the run of play is unfavourable, is a very rare capacity for an athlete. Federer and Nadal own that capacity to a considerable degree.

Novak Djokovic owns that capacity to an even greater extent and this is why he will likely pass both men in major titles before it's all said and done.

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