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Rennae Stubbs, former Australian coach of US tennis icon Serena Williams, expressed her point of view on the GOAT issue, placing emphasis on the desire shown by Novak Djokovic to excel from a statistical point of view.
She said: “I think Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal personified the desire to win, but for Novak Djokovic it’s an obsession and you can see it.
He wants to increase his numbers because he knows he will never be popular all over the world like Roger and Rafa It’s a fact and I admire him for it.”Words that Chris Evert, former WTA number one, did not particularly appreciate.
Evert defends Novak Djokovic
The 18-time Grand Slam singles champion posted a tweet with the statements made by Stubbs and wrote: “In my opinion, it doesn’t matter where her desire to win comes from.
The fact is that he has surpassed both and should be admired for his achievements and records.”Evert therefore wanted, in some way, to defend Djokovic by recognizing everything he has done for the world of tennis.
To me, it doesn’t really matter where his motivation to win comes from, the fact is, he’s passing the other two and should be admired for his achievements and his records….🤷♀️💪 https://t.co/0uJMktE7FR — Chris Evert (@ChrissieEvert) September 19, 2023
Stubbs’ speech could be compared to that elaborated by Rafael Nadal in a recent interview given to Movistar Plus.
The Spanish champion also focused on this profound desire that pushed Djokovic to overcome every limit.
He said: “You can’t be frustrated with 22 Slam titles. Can you live frustrated with 22 Slams? For example, Novak lives it more intensely.
It would have been a greater frustration for him not to have succeeded. Maybe that’s why he made it.”Nadal’s words opened the debate on the web. Some fans think that the Spaniard wanted to highlight one of the qualities that allowed Djokovic to win 24 Slams, others, however, believe that he only wanted to underline the Serbian’s greater obsession towards his goals.
