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Hey, hey, this is Shaun with the GoTennis! Podcast powered by Signature Tennis.

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And today, right now, is 10 minutes of tennis with World Renowned Tennis Coach, Australian

and Puerto Rico Justin Yeo.

Today, we are asking the question, what's next for Novak?

Justin, let's have a conversation about Novak Djokovic.

Where do you want to start?

Okay, we'll be hitting number 25 at the Australian Open.

Big question, big doubt.

Where there's neat and handled it.

But my spirit is there to do it.

So that will be the physically is pretty much, I think, the question.

Okay, so physically, can he win another major?

Is that the question?

Are we talking about Izzy Kablebule of just winning the next one?

Because we're time stamping this conversation to say, this is November of 2024.

We're talking about the upcoming Australian Open.

Yeah, I mean, that's the one he's been the most successful in.

So it's just the perfect, I'm wearing all the right colors and the right shit for it.

But most of the time, my suggestion that he has the spirit and tends to be wanting it.

You can see he wants it.

I just don't know if he's the same injury as Novak.

I mean, that's Federer and we saw Federer just try, try, try again.

So let's hope.

He's got the spirit for it.

There's no question, but physically to be center, operets, these guys, it's going to be

very interesting.

Especially if we take a break, they're going to be physically in good shape ready to go

by this Australian Open.

Yeah, because you got these 21, 22 year old, the seemingly infinite energy in the same way

that Novak and Rafa were 15, 20 years ago, right?

So in this case, they've just, they're not worried about resting in the same way he was.

Where he qualifies, I mean, how often does that often happen?

He qualifies for the year in final and just doesn't play.

Is it injury or is that rest?

Yeah, I mean, look, the key factor here too, we have to realize is that Novak is, he's

not in the shadow of the other two anymore as well.

So I feel like he's got a new image, a new direction and wants to be in that, I guess I would

say the top of the top of the show right now for a little bit of time, but I just think

the spirit is there.

I think he really is going to really go for it.

And then Rizmai said, it's next year, it's because a year from then, who knows?

Another whole year of the strength of the tour and how much he has to play and keep up to

stand at top five, top 10.

I think it's pretty good ruling year, head for it and the strength of going to be his biggest

fire.

I'd say at the start.

Well, let's compare a little bit.

If we look at how Roger went out, I think he didn't push it too far where maybe Andy Murray

was pushing it too far, realizing, hey, what are you going to do?

If you can't make the top 50, you give it up.

We talked about Dominic Team recently.

Guys just really trying, chilliches trying to come back.

I get it, but guys at the top of the game, we can't all go out, excuse me, we, they can't

all go out at the top like Ash Bardi or Pete Samperous comes out, bang, I'm going to win

one more and then I'm out.

It might drop scenario.

What do you picture for Novak?

You think what type of person is he?

Is he a grind it out?

Do you think he's going to say, if I'm out of the top 10, I'm not going to bother?

Yeah, that's a high one to answer because we've all talked about it and it's been talked

about a lot in the press.

You're really your best answers are going to come from the pros and even the pros would

tell you that if you're still got the hunger, you get back in.

I mean, late in the new year, just kept going and going and going because he had it in, late

and had it in his head that I'm just going to the job and as long as the job keeps paying

me, I'll just keep doing the job.

So he just kept going.

It wasn't about necessarily titles, it was about competing and just doing the job.

So I think each player looks at a little different.

Pete didn't want to see himself fall into the hundreds and say I just want to keep down.

He wanted to finish on top and that's how he did it.

I can see because of the personality trait.

Yeah, I think the player has their choice in their time and Roger has said it in his thing,

right?

He just wanted to go around his own blade and his own thing.

We all had a feeling that he said he was never leaving the game.

It would have thought, maybe he would just come back like everybody else does.

But we haven't seen that.

So I don't think so.

But I think he just wants the choice to go when he wants to go.

It's hard because it's the same conversation every time.

As soon as he gets a loss or someone else wins another title.

He's like, no, stop talking that way.

I heard a conversation with Curios too lately.

Pete talks about, you just want to be able to do it in your own way.

You don't want to have to be driven by everyone's comments and everything else.

Curios' multiple times, I think, try to come back and always thinking about it.

But who knows exactly how he feels body feels.

They don't really say where they're at because that's their world, that's what they want to do.

So with Novak, I just think he's come out of the two other shadows and he's really shown

some maturity lately as an idol, as a player that really is meaning something in the world

now tennis.

He's so much more mature, the way he speaks, the way he represents himself.

So I don't know.

Maybe it's a couple more years, but get out of it.

That would be nice.

I like that.

And I heard you mentioned Curios.

I heard Curios is playing Brisbane this year.

So I think he's going to give it a go there.

Now it'll be interesting to see how much further.

But do they learn a little bit from Rafa?

Rafa takes a year off and you just can't get the wheels spinning at that point once you've

been out that long.

Yeah, but Rafa had like a year's four injuries for at least 10, 15 years.

I mean, he's going to keep his injuries going forever, right?

Yeah, we're not talking about a couple of years, talking about over a decade.

I mean, the taping and all the issues were back in 2009 when he beat Federator the first

time in the Australian Open.

And he's been battling all that stuff for a long time.

That's one of the--

I'm just talking about the traction, the momentum that it takes to play at that level, the

play five sets.

It's not just you take a year off.

Now I'm healthy and you jump right back in.

You're exceeded, you're untested, you're not used to it.

It's just a different thing.

Yep, yep, absolutely.

And it's hard to watch too when you see a player come back that this doesn't fully right

there like we've used to see.

And you have to realize too, I mean, Craig Shaunas, he-- there's a lot of proof lately that

you can see the difference in velocity to speed of the racket.

The earlyness, the players are picking up on the ball and hitting the ball faster and

harder, which basically means the dial has to be quick.

And faster and stronger.

And how do you get stronger and faster at the age of 37?

Yeah, that's not how humans work.

It isn't.

I mean, you can bring up Tom Brady, what do you do?

He's short in the pitch, he's short in the throws.

He made his game around his age.

You know, where--

Team sports is a bit apples and oranges there, but I get your point.

Right.

Right.

But it's hard to do on an individual sport, on a sport this level.

So yeah, I would say the way this sport is grown, that's sort of our true graphite.

So yeah, for sure.

The drug-abitch--

The drug-abitch, what's held him good is his, you know, flexibility, his determination,

his, you know, dedication to this sport too, that he just, every day, keeps doing what

he does.

As long as he stays fit, he'll always be there to compete in the top five.

There's no question.

So it's how long he wants to do that for.

Right.

That's the last question that I have for you.

Not necessarily how long.

I'm not going to ask when he's going to retire, but your view of Novak and how you picture

him and what you think, how he works.

What's his ranking in his mind?

If he hits a certain ranking, what's his ranking when he retires?

We're off of retired at like 150 in the world where he tried to come back and didn't work.

Everybody has that, you know, not everybody can do the ash party and be number one when

they go out.

You don't picture Novak getting back to one in the world.

I'll bet he does.

I'll bet he thinks that he's still got that and he can pull that off.

What do you think, Justin, you know, my journalistic side?

What's his, what's his ranking when he retires?

Sixteen.

Sixteen is a good number.

I'm okay.

You creep out of the top 10, heading towards the 20s, but I don't know.

I'm picking 16 on him because he'll have to be seriously injured and it'll slowly, you

won't have that protection anymore.

That's the only way.

Otherwise, you only have to look at the top 10 and as long as he's somewhat fit, he'll

beat most of them.

Yeah.

I'm going to take the over on that one.

I will take the over.

I think he will be, listen, which one is over in the ranking?

Over under?

Yeah.

Over is 16.

I'll take the over.

I think he's going to be ranked above the 16.

Okay.

Below 16.

All right.

And we'll follow up.

We'll have this conversation in a year and we'll see if he's number one in the world.

We'll probably both wrong, right?

Yeah.

Well, I hope for the game of tennis because, you know, I would be in play like that and the

capabilities that Marty does and what he brings.

We need it for the sport.

No doubt.

All right, great.

Justin, you know, this has been 10 minutes of tennis.

Thank you, Sarah.

We'll see you next week.

Cheers, guys.

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