“I flew all day yesterday, I didn’t have a chance to watch anything,” she said, after arriving in Toronto for the Rogers Cup from Los Angeles.
But Jankovic didn’t have to see the match to know Djokovic had produced something special. With 20-year-old became the first player to defeat both Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer at the same event, defeating the No. 2 and No. 1 ranked players back-to-back over the weekend.
“Big congrats to Novak, he has done something amazing, beating Nadal and Federer at the same tournament – it’s not something that happens every day,” said Jankovic. “I hope he can continue like this and do something big time at the US Open.”
Ivanovic’s victory wasn’t quite as sweet for Jankovic, given that it came at her expense in the semifinals. Jankovic was a point away from leading 5-1 in the third set and had two match points at 5-4 on Ivanovic’s serve.
“I never should have lost that match. I felt I was the better player and I had everything under my control and I let it slip away,” she said. Though admitting that Ivanovic came up with some big shots at big moments, Jankovic partly attributed the loss to a lingering flu. “Physically, I was very tired and my level dropped when it was the most important.”
The effects are slowly wearing off. “I’m still blowing my nose but otherwise I feel okay,” she said. “I used to feel very tired... sore throat, fever, couldn’t get out of bed. But now I can do everything.”
Getting sick on the heels of a post-Wimbledon vacation meant that Jankovic went nearly a month without playing – practically unheard of for the indefatigable Serb. She has played 28 events in the past year, more than anyone else in the Top 10, capped by a stretch of nine straight weeks through Wimbledon.“I’m a player who likes to compete,” she said. “I’m not a player who likes to spend many hours on the practice court; practice four months and then go to play one tournament, practice again. I’m not about that.”
No comments:
Post a Comment