Given his remarkable performances so far, it came as a surprise when Novak Djokovic showed how hard he has been training his operated knee.
Because Djokovic is the epitome of a warrior in a sport where few can match his determination and stamina. He plays through the tough times, unless he can’t give up.
Twenty-six days after his surgery, Djokovic leaves Centre Court today to begin his new road to success at Wimbledon, a tournament he has won seven times before.
“The knee has responded very well to all that so far, which is of course a good sign for my participation in Wimbledon. That’s why I decided to enter the draw,” Djokovic, the second seed, told reporters on Saturday.
‘I am confident about the health of my knee and my general physical condition is very good.’
Novak Djokovic has proven his fitness in time to appear on Centre Court today
Djokovic underwent knee surgery less than a month ago and has exceeded all expectations
He has some strange beliefs, including drinking water from a pyramid in Bosnia
He also has a super clean diet and believes in the power of positive affirmations of his food
The real question on everyone’s lips was: how did he pull the rabbit out of the hat this time?
On June 3, 2024, Djokovic faced Francisco Serundolo in the round of 16 at Roland Garros. After an epic battle of four hours and 39 minutes in what was his longest match at the Grand Slam in Paris, he still managed to win.
But he suffered a serious injury, a disaster for Djokovic and the tournament. His knee was damaged and despite his dislike for surgery, he knew it was the only option.
A day later he announced his withdrawal from the tournament and on June 5 he underwent surgery to repair the meniscus in his right knee, seriously jeopardizing his participation in Wimbledon.
“Yes, people need to understand that not all knee operations are the same,” American star player Taylor Fritz said recently in Eastbourne.
‘I saw people talking about the problems Federer had with his knee surgeries and that he wouldn’t be recovered in a few weeks.
“I think, ‘Yes, because it’s different.’ This is probably, in terms of surgeries that you have to have and then come back as quickly as possible, one of the best ones you can have, because it’s not a meniscus repair.
“If you tear your meniscus. You don’t necessarily need your whole meniscus to be just fine. You can just have the part that you tore cut out and it’s more of an inconvenience.
“That’s why he tore his, but he could still play because wherever the tear was, there wouldn’t be anything blocked. When I tore mine, I couldn’t actually walk because there was something blocked, but the actual procedure to remove it, it’s all the same and the only thing that really involves the recovery is just the swelling of the actual incision, it’s just the repair of that.
Djokovic underwent a rigorous rehabilitation to be ready for the battle for an eighth Wimbledon
He claims his knee has responded well to his rehabilitation, along with his daily meditation sessions
‘Strength-wise, you’re at full strength straight away, it’s just about recovering from the surgery itself, not about the muscle stuff. So I’m not surprised, I think he had his surgery before me – I think he needs more time to recover than me.
“I know for sure that my first match at Wimbledon was exactly 20 days after my surgery, so I played a little less than three weeks after my surgery. So he gets a whole week more than me. So it’s absolutely no surprise that he can hit lightly in the middle now.”
Unorthodox is the word that suits Djokovic and his various beliefs, from pyramid water to a temple that keeps him calm, or the Bosnian mountain he stays by.
Djokovic is all about marginal gains and this latest rehab will be full of strange ways to get back into shape.
Previously, he has shown his faith in the healing power of trampolines, the use of meditation to combat injuries, the belief that you can clean dirty water using only the power of your emotions. The list goes on.
There was the time Djokovic set an alarm on his phone so he would know exactly to the minute when it had been a year since he last ate a piece of chocolate.
Or the time he listened to The Beatles and a Serbian rock band called Električni Orgazam over and over again to perfect the rhythm of his famous backlash.
Djokovic’s online chats with Chevrin Jafarieh (below) became infamous during the pandemic
This week he was spotted training with British star Emma Raducanu (left)
Or the belief he places in the healing power of ‘pyramid water’.
An article on Wimbledon’s official website details the ‘benefits of pyramid water’.
“Novak really appreciates the water from the pyramids. He sees it as a benefit to him,” said Sam Osmanagic, who announced his discovery of the pyramids to the world in 2005.
“When Novak comes here, he always gets water.”
Djokovic swears by it and has made several pilgrimages to the town of Visoko in Bosnia to ‘recharge himself with the cosmic energy radiated by the ancient pyramids’.
“There is really a wonderful energy here,” Djokovic said in 2018. “If there is a paradise on earth, it is here.”
Traditional medicine and routine rehabilitation practices do not appeal to Djokovic; his psyche and mentality have long been on a different level.
Food is an important area for him, especially the ‘positive energy’ that food can spread.
Yoga and meditation have become an important part of Djokovic’s routine in a bid to stay on top
Djokovic (pictured with his son Stefan) is a Christian and a member of the Serbian Orthodox Church
In his book, Serve to Win: The 14-Day Gluten-free Plan for Physical and Mental Excellence, the Serbian superstar gives a stunning account of how he believes conversation influences the food we eat.
Djokovic believes that negative conversations can be detrimental to food because they take away its nutrients and flavor.
In his rehabilitation now, as he has done for years, Djokovic is positive about affirming his beliefs about his food before he eats. Wild, but it works for him.
Djokovic explains: ‘I believe that if you eat with some kind of fear, anxiety or anger, the taste of the food and the energy you get from it will not be as powerful… What you give is what you get.’
He is also obsessive when it comes to chewing, an act that requires his complete concentration.
“While I chew, the digestion process begins,” he wrote.
‘The enzymes in my saliva mix with the food so that it is a fully formed piece of ‘information’ when it reaches my stomach.’
Djokovic often likes to talk about his beliefs, about nutrition, about special water and about not getting vaccinated against Covid. That is why his ‘magic potion’, which he encountered at previous Wimbledon events, is so intriguing.
His bizarre drinking habit at Wimbledon was compounded when he refused to reveal what was in the bottle, claiming it was ‘magic potion’.
“Magic potion, that’s all I can say,” he said when pressed.
Jelena Djokovic was labeled “false information” by Instagram last year after she shared a conspiracy theory that 5G contributed to the spread of the coronavirus
His wife Jelena, who also has her own idiosyncratic ideas, even lashed out at her husband’s critics when it came to the ‘drink’ in question.
“This whole nonsense that you have to make people talk about something they’re not ready for because others are impatient is absurd,” she said.
‘Sit in silence for a moment. Pay more attention to yourself. Not everything you see is controversial. It can be private. Is that okay?’
Normally, Djokovic visits a nearby Buddhist temple during these weeks.
The Buddhapadipa Temple, on a leafy suburban street just minutes from the All England Club grounds, has been a regular visitor to the reigning champions in previous years.
Djokovic, an Orthodox Christian, once lived next to the temple, spending up to an hour a day on the four-hectare grounds to meditate and improve his concentration.
“Many years ago he came to live next to the temple and every morning he would meditate in the temple,” Reverend Piyobhaso, minister of religion in Buddhapdipa, told Mail Sport.
“He preferred to come in the morning, from 30 minutes to an hour. Sometimes he would spend an hour at the lake. He became friends with some of the members.
“Novak is a very friendly person. He always smiled and didn’t mind taking pictures with the temple members. He said meditation helps with his tennis.”
Whatever Djokovic eats, drinks, prays, believes, it works; it works for him anyway. Because 26 days after going under the knife, here he is, at Wimbledon, convinced that an eighth men’s singles title is within his grasp.
If there’s one thing we have to teach you, it’s this: never underestimate Novak Djokovic.