World No. 1 Novak Djokovic admitted that he “underestimated” the emotional state he was in following the Australia visa debacle.
In Australia, Djokovic went through maybe the most challenging days of his career as his visa was twice cancelled and he was twice detained.
After losing his second Australia visa appeal, Djokovic was deported from the country.
Once Djokovic finally kicked off his season, he was nowhere near his best level.
In an interview with Tennis Channel, Djokovic detailed how the Australia saga affected him once he started playing.
“As many years I’ve been on the tour and as much experience as I have in the tennis eco-system, both on and off the court, being involved in the player council and politics and press. I consider myself experienced with different kinds of things that are part of my life. Still this was something that was completely unexpected. So it did take a toll on me, more mentally, emotionally than physically,” Djokovic said on Tennis Channel, per Sportskeeda.
Djokovic: I was more nervous than usual
Djokovic suffered a shock defeat to Jiri Vesely in Dubai, before he was stunned by Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in Monte Carlo.
In Belgrade, Djokovic won three tight matches before losing to Andrey Rublev in the final.
“I felt I wasn’t myself… bit more nervous than usual… more of a defensive mode when I started to play officially. It took me a little bit of time to get through that,” Djokovic admitted.
“I was just trying to figure things out… going back to that optimal state of body, mind and soul and just approach the next tournament as any other. That was my mindset, but I realised that I needed to play official matches… to deal with that.”
Also, Djokovic suggested there was some kind of a mental block that was preventing him from going out and playing freely and dominantly.
“It’s tough to explain. I don’t have any words for that particularly. There was that feeling that was holding me back a little bit, particularly in those first couple of tournaments… first few matches… I was kind of holding myself a little bit back,” Djokovic added.