Novak Djokovic must bounce back at US Open after he ‘really cracked up’ at the Olympics – Boris Becker

Novak Djokovic will need to show his mental toughness at the US Open, after he “really cracked up” at the Olympics – according to Boris Becker.

Djokovic’s bid for a Golden Slam – all four grand slams and an Olympic win in the same year – disappeared in defeat to Alexander Zverev at the semi-final stage in Tokyo.

It was a startling capitulation from Djokovic, as he was a set and a break to the good – only for his German opponent to rally and claim victory.

The Olympics was the one setback in a stellar 2021 which has seen Djokovic win the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon.

A calendar Grand Slam is still on the cards, while victory at the US Open would see him break the tie with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer for the most majors wins in the men’s game – with the trio tied on 20.

He heads to New York with doubts over a shoulder injury, but Becker feels the Serb also needs to bounce back mentally.

“You could already see that Novak was mentally really battered at the Olympic Games in Tokyo,” Eurosport expert Becker said. “He played very well in parts, but I saw that he was at the limit of his mental load – and when he lost to Sascha, he really cracked up.”

Djokovic lost in the bronze medal match to Pablo Carreno Busta, and subsequently pulled out of the same stage of the mixed doubles.

He was criticised for not lining up with Nina Stojanovic, but Becker felt that negative coverage was unfair.

“He would never let his country down,” Becker said of Djokovic. “He was mentally and physically no longer able to continue playing.

“Of course, the critics came, but that is the other side of his fame. He is criticised much more than almost every tennis player. It’s the price he’s had to pay for a long time.”

Djokovic will head to Flushing Meadows without any competitive preparation, but Becker feels it may work to the Serbian’s advantage.

“Winning the Grand Slam is the most difficult task in tennis,” Djokovic said. “If he had just kept playing, I think he would have run out of steam in the second week in New York.

“It’s not an ideal preparation, he always plays a hard court tournament before, but this year is a bit different. He also won Paris and played a tournament right before Paris, he’s never done that before. Then he played Wimbledon without a preparation tournament and won it as well – this year everything is different and maybe that fits into his plan. But he needed a break, especially to recover from the mental strain of the year.”