Andrea Petkovic: Novak Djokovic's adaptability is one of his biggest strengths

• Tennis News
• Novak Djokovic

Andrea Petkovic believes Novak Djokovic's ability to adapt to any situation or circumstance is one of the biggest reasons why the Serb is such a dominant force. Petkovic, who retired from pro tennis after the 2022 US Open, revealed that Boris Becker compared Djokovic to water during their recent conversation.

During her conversation with Becker, Petkovic was told by the Serb's ex-coach that "Djokovic is like water, you can never really grasp him." "Some thoughts I had while watching Novak these past two weeks, where he arguably played the best tennis he‘s ever played.

His biggest strengths are his eyes - he sees the ball earlier than anybody else - and his ADAPTABILITY. He doesn‘t have a distinct 'Novak' playing style, BUT he can adapt to any given condition, surface and opponent. He needs to play defensive? He can.

He needs to be aggressive? He can. He needs to counter-punch? He damn well can. Something @TheBorisBecker said to me recently was very interesting: 'Novak is like water, you can never really grasp him.' It‘s been fascinating to watch for years.

That he is obviously mentally strong, physically fit, etc etc is a given. But the adaptability makes him almost impossible to beat because as an opponent you never know who will be," Petkovic explained on Twitter.

Novak is like water, you can never really grasp him.

It‘s been fascinating to watch for years. That he is obviously mentally strong, physically fit, etc etc is a given. But the adaptibility makes him almost impossible to beat because as an opponent you never know who will be… — Andrea Petkovic (@andreapetkovic) January 29, 2023

Djokovic overcame a hamstring injury to make history

Djokovic suffered a hamstring injury in his first tournament of the year at the Adelaide International.

Still, Djokovic went on to win back-to-back titles at the Adelaide International and Australian Open. Following his Australian Open triumph, Djokovic tied Rafael Nadal on the all-time Grand Slam record list with 22 Grand Slams.

After Nadal won the 2022 Australian Open and French Open, Djokovic responded by winning last year's Wimbledon and this year's Australian Open. Djokovic is again in a strong position to finish with the all-time Grand Slam record.