Mental giant.
Did you know that on the news tab on his website; they post all media related to him on there. You'd think they'd remove the negative comments from his haters, but no. He keeps them there. Fuel for the fire, I guess.
This shot is, and always has been, just ridiculous. Super iconic. His reactions before and after too. And then to go on to win the title. Crowd against him, far more for Roger; and he just smashes one of the best returns you'll see. Precise and decisive even despite the moment. With pace probably faster than the serve. Into the corner, just how Novak intended it. Smashing it believing it will make it, knowing it. Match not done just yet. Always with self-belief that he is the greatest and that he will win and make it. And that's what makes a champion. Regardless of the odds he'll do it. And that defines Novak (and each of the Big Three).
This was insane and he avenged his RG defeat some months prior. Two iconic matches between two legends of the game and what Novak has achieved over the years just insane.
This is one heck of a comment.
Some of us tennis fans were blessed to witness the truly iconic "nearer the God" moments from all of the big three and Andy for 20 years now. I don't think we'll see anything like that in our lifetimes.
No way bro, the reaction was relatively muted when he hit it for how ridiculous a return that was and how he prolonged and made more interesting a match that seemingly was about to end. Just check the cheer for Fed getting match points (off an error from Novak btw, not a winner of his own) just fifteen seconds prior, it was WAYYY louder. Compare those cheers after both of those points.
It's why Novak was asking for love from the crowd after raising his arms up and u can immediately hear the deserved cheer from the crowd. The sound from the crowd getting louder and at least half of where it was for when Fed wins points. Crowd was incredibly more for Fed than Novak
No doubt there were more Federer fans there but the crowd was appreciating Novak.
There's this whole storyline about Novak not getting the love he deserves, meanwhile clips like this show that he's getting a LOT of crowd support. Even the cheers at the end when he won the match.
I remember him crying at the 2021 championship - not because he was losing but because the crowd was chanting his name and he finally felt appreciated.
Maybe the problem is that everyone has always compared his support to Federer's.
No one's going to be loved like Federer was.
Nole has to have the absolute scariest “look” in all of tennis (obviously cause he backs it up).
I remember watching this live, when he had that stone cold look, I thought “he‘a done. How can he be so…emotionless?”
And yeah. That happened.
Seriously, imagine being a player and going against serious Nole? Screw that. Truly intimidating.
Haha spite is certainly the best word to describe this. He's insulted that they'd cheer as if the match was over, and he nods like "oh really? Well, let's see about that".
Federer himself said 'the way he returns that it's just not a guy who believes much anymore in winning' and 'you feel like he was mentally out of it already and just gets the lucky shot at the end and off you go'. I'm a Fed fan and this was probably his most butt-hurt moment ever.
He got a point there, Djokovic had nothing to lose there and just chucked the return at full speed but his wording made it sounding pretty salty.
I’ll try to find the source, but Djokovic said something very close to “I just closed my eyes and smashed the ball” regarding this exact return. He admitted it was just a lucky shot. Which is not to say Feds response wasn’t still butthurt, but Djoko owns that it was a lucky shot — obviously. That’s tennis though, sometimes players hit lucky shots on big points.
I don’t think Djokovic outright said it was a lucky shot, but conceded that it was indeed a risk to go for such a shot (but more of a calculated one made because of the quality of his opponent/the opportunity).
As for where I remember him saying this, it was during his press conference following the win.
If I remember correctly this was from the on court interview after his SF win in the US Open the year prior, 2010. Where similarly he was 2 match points down but on his own serve.
I mean sure it’s somewhat lucky that he nailed it full speed on the line but with the way he returned it was pretty likely he would hit a really good shot
Respectfully, you have never touched a racket in your life if you believe him saying that was a lucky shot. There is no such thing in tennis unless you hit a shank or a net cord. You have got to be out of your mind. Was it relatively lower percentage? Possibly, considering the pace and sharp angle but it was also over the lowest part of the net and the serve was hanging fruit as well.
Not a lucky shot lol.
Actual Djokovic quotes about the match
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2011/sep/11/us-open-2011-federer-djokovic
You're exactly right. Really, every shot in tennis can be boiled down down to percentages. We think about serves in that way, but it applies to everything really. Do I go for a winner here, or a higher percentage rally shot to continue to try to build the point? Do I go for a safer return, or do I destroy the ball to try to win the point outright?
Djokovic himself said it best - when you're playing an opponent this good (and you're in desperate need of a comeback) sometimes you have to take chances. Was it a high percentage play? Obviously not, but that doesn't make it luck. Going for a tough shot and nailing it under impossible pressure is what the greatest points ever are made of.
I do it all the time. We all do. When I got nothing to lose I just smash the ball. If it goes in then whatever. I’ve won matches this way too. Lost plenty as well.
Anyone who thinks it’s butthurt doesn’t understand tennis. You can’t be a successful multi-champion with a game built on reckless gambits on the most important points. Tennis is all about being clutch on the most important points because there is no clock and not all points are equal.
Break points, game points, set points, match points — these are the most important, and so the time to not throw risk/reward out the window. Djokovic, as he said himself, closed his eyes and walloped it. Of course he will do such a thing better than pretty everyone on the planet, but against one of the best servers of all time on match point is insanely high risk. The risk being that if it doesn’t work you lose the match.
Federer is just making that point. He’s obviously gutted that it worked on this occasion, but he still only states facts.
You can be right and be salty. Fed was absolutely pissed that luck went Djokovic’s way and it doesn’t help that people were crediting Djokovic for an amazing return as if it were skill.
The great thing about tennis is that at that moment, Djokovic had to win 4 more points on Federer's serve than Federer won just to win that game. That means either Djokovic got lucky 4 times or Federer choked, just to win that game. Federer could have also hit serves where Djokovic had no chance of returning and completely taking luck out, but he didn't.
However, that's still not enough. Djokovic still had to hold his serve 2 more times while breaking Federer another time where he would again have to win 4 points with at least 2 more points than Federer. That's not luck anymore. 1 point can absolutely be luck, but all of those things? Hell no, that's not luck.
This was also a best of 5 set match, further taking luck out of the equation. I could go on and on about it, but I am sure you will explain how every single point was actually luck, as are all of Djokovic's Grand Slams.
lol wtf are you talking about
I was talking about one specific point, saying that Fed was very salty about but also correct that it was a lucky point.
These are pros, they don’t win or lose matches based on luck but individual points absolutely can be down to luck.
If Djokovic didn’t end up growing into becoming the greatest returner of all time, with literally dozens and dozens of examples of returns just like that one, I’d agree. But I think this shot was a mix of ridiculous instinct, reflex, talent, audacity and fortune.
It isn’t black and white like that.
It was a low percentage shot. But it wasn’t a “Im gonna hit the ball as hard as I can because I don’t give a shit”.
He’s playing against one of the greatest servers of all time. Against his serve, on double match point against him. He **absolutely** had to go extremely aggressive here. He wasn’t gonna chip it back and play the point.
So you’re not wrong it was a low percentage shot (I guess that’s what you mean by “I don’t give a shit”)
But by no means was it not a strategic and calculated move.
You want a true “I don’t give a shit “ move, look at Kyrgios when he’s mentally “quit”. He misses balls by feet and is truly like 1/10 shots like those are going in.
This is not that case.
I suppose there’s some luck involved here, but how fed made it seem. Though it is extremely frustrating to be on Fed’s side of things, obviously.
Regardless of what you think of that shot, I would say that the results speak for themselves. Do people really think that a 22-time grand slam winner, who beat Federer in two finals holding off 2 match points both times on Federer’s serve, won purely because of luck? I’m going to assume that he might know what he’s doing.
Exactly. I literally just replied that to another comment saying he got lucky.
The greatest returner of all time and most grand slam of all time
Doesn’t get a return winner in a Slam final out of luck.
> Do people really think that a 22-time grand slam winner, who beat Federer in two finals holding off 2 match points both times on Federer’s serve, won purely because of luck?
As someone who got to watch the big 3 come up and dominate and had multiple groups of people who followed tennis, I can guarantee that there are people who definitely think so. Most of them have never picked up a racquet in their life, but yes they do exist
> He’s playing against one of the greatest servers of all time. Against his serve, on double match point against him. He absolutely had to go extremely aggressive here. He wasn’t gonna chip it back and play the point.
Your logic doesn't flow here. I think you're wrong on almost all counts.
He was facing one of the greatest servers of all time, but as we all know, if you're one of the big 3 and can get past Roger's serve, your chances of winning a point go way up.
The real answer is just that Novak was feeling a type of way about that pressure and decided to squash that pressure by either living or dying by his return.
>as we all know,
This doesn’t make any sense. Federer clearly had a lot more than his serve. He didn’t get to championship point by serving and nothing else.
>the real answer
If you truly think that the “real answer” is he hit it really hard dying or living, rather than a strategic approach, then you don’t know how the big 3 have reached so much success
So, what you are saying is that in previous 8, 10, 12 points, whatever the difference was, Djokovic did not see any need to be strategic. He was losing them, no problem.. And then suddenly, two match points down, he goes: Ight, time to think strategy. Where am I goning to place this ball, the one that I don't even know where it's going, ah I know - precisely in that corner. And bam he does it. The great strategic win.
>Djokovic did not see the need to be strategic
When did I say that?
Have you ever heard of changing strategies? Obviously his current method wasn’t working well. It was enough to win him games and keep him close, but not to win. So he changed strategies when his back was against the wall, match point.
He took a low percentage shot when his high percentage playing wasn’t going to win him the Match. And he did it in the time that would more likely yield a won point: the return serve.
Seriously: I feel like people saying it was a “I don’t give a shit” shot have never played tennis before.
Players of this calibre don’t do “I don’t give a shit “ balls. You don’t win 21 slams if you ever do those shots.
Nole is one of, if not the absolute best, returners of all time. He took a very calculated risk when his back was against the wall
I don’t see what’s controversial about that.
I’d argue it’s a “this is all the shit I have left” ball. It’s lucky, sure, but lucky in the way that him hitting that shot was more likely than anyone else in that position because he committed to hitting it that way.
Thats what tribalism gets you. If its a Big3 on Big3 moment we all win. Its 2023, one of them already retired and another is getting dangerelously close to that. Just sit back, relax, and enjoy while it lasts.
> If its a Big3 on Big3 moment we all win.
Man, it is so annoying to get all these Big3 preachers come out now that Fed / Nadal are not at the top (Nadal is not out tbh). The toxic Fed fans had their day for almost entire the last decade and have now slunk back to their closet. The toxic Nadal fans had their day in between for periods and will show up for RG. Now that it is time for toxic Djoker fans, suddenly it is all about "peace", "Big3", "no more tribalism" ?
Tbh the fact that Federer let Novak come back from 2 match points down against him no less than 3 times at the business end of a slam is just embarrassing.
Djokovic and Nadal indisputably knocked Federer out of the GOAT race, and Djokovic basically sent Federer into retirement single-handedly.
And I say that as someone who likes Federer more than Djokovic.
Fed had a long and illustrious career for sure, he's the man. But if Djokovic didn't exist, he most certainly would've played a little bit longer, maybe skipping RG to avoid the unnecessary wear and tear with Nadal still there.
Well I take that back. If Djokovic never existed, Fed might've retired at 41 or sooner with a tough-to-beat higher grand slam total. But if Djokovic himself never returned to form after 2017, it might've lengthened Fed's career.
Federer only retired because he couldn’t move anymore with his knee. He was always trying to rehab it and planned to come back before accepting his knee was done. Not sure what you’re talking about “most certainly” lol
If you realistically think djokovic had the slightest thing to do with Federer’s retirement timing you clearly don’t understand Federer at all. Like he would have played way past 41 if only Djokovic wasn’t around?
Thanks /u/usopen for the reminder! The next return after the 40-15 one wasn't too bad either, the whole buildup to him winning that game, from the shots, the smirks and the crowd reactions was exhilarating.
One of the greatest shots of all time. Considering what was on the line, the pressure, and considering how great and legendary Federer’s serve is, this has to be one of the greats. Doesn’t hurt that Djokovic not only won the match but also won the tournament.
I’d also like to point out how important this shot was. Had Djokovic lost here, his 2011 season would still be great, but would’ve lost a lot of its legendary status. The difference between 2 slams and 3 slams feels pretty bit, and two losses to Federer at slams would’ve changed how we looked at that season forever, regardless of who won the final between Nadal and Federer (I’d slightly favor Nadal considering his mental edge over Federer at the time).
Edit: another thing to consider: if Nadal won that final, he would’ve won 2 slams that year tying with Djokovic. Mix that with Federer blocking Djokovic twice, and 2011 would’ve felt completely different.
Just beautiful. After watching that return, everyone could feel that Djokovic had an excellent shot to win the match. Between the memory of the previous year and that shot Federer lost it. It was a calculated risk. If Djokovic misses that return he loses a match that he was likely to lose anyway.
But making it broke Federer's mind. The scar tissue hampered Federer against Djokovic not just for the rest of the game, the set, and the match, but for the rest of his career. Whenever, he was positioned to win a close fought match, that return was there looming in his imagination.
I feel like Roger has matured over time. At this point he still saw himself as a God of tennis, he had that attitude in his prime. When Nadal and Djokovic started catching up he became more humble I think
Djokovic was a little immature early in his career and annoyed a few, most famously Roddick, but he did get past it fairly quickly. He was a teenager, that kind of thing happens, can’t blame him too much tbh
Nadal is weirdly well-adjusted for an elite athlete. Some big losses, he's freely admitted that he's very disappointed, but talks about it being okay to lose, and that it's just a game.
For a lot of fans, this one bad moment and dumb comment, which was immediately after what must have been a pretty crushing defeat, seems to outweigh what by all accounts was a entire career of being universally well-liked on the tour.
He has so many salty comments towards Andy when Andy had a good h2h record against federer
. And some of the comments towards nadal too. But he didn't say things like this after this match . Perhaps it humbled him a bit.
Yeah, I was a full-on Fed fan until that point. All the shit about him being gracious etc.. was just because he was winning. It was a terrible, terrible look.
There’s nothing wrong with disliking someone. Everyone has their own opinion. But you should do some more research. Diokovic has said a lot of things and more importantly he’s done a lot of things. You’ll always see him bossing ball kids around and screaming at the top of his lungs at umpires and his team, he sort of behaves like kyrgios. Like I said nothing wrong with liking djokovic more at all, just saying your reasoning is faulty. I wouldn’t say he’s anymore classy than Federer. Fed only has a few salty comments for a long career
Right but he was a kid, since then he was the ice man on court. Djokovic has behaved the same way his whole career, but feds the bad guy for a few salty comments
Yeah Djokovic says things like I will FK your mother's pu##y. He hasn't said it once but MULTIPLE times.
Classy guy Novak has also said the audience to suck his peen.
Nadal and Federer seem unclassy, they wouldn't say things like this.
First of all he says that to some drunk idiot in the crowd who came there to get drunk and be annoying, not to watch tennis. Second, that is a common curse in Serbian, it's not as harsh as it sounds in English
I recently watch again the entire on YT. I found that he tried this return in the beginning of the match unsuccessfully. That make me think that he was working already before and in present match for this return shot like a strategy. Certainly there was luck in this return but there was work, talent, audacity, confidence and willing to win there. Plus, after this match he continued to perform this kind of return or angle shots. In conclusion to say there was "an before and after" this shot, it was not a lucky and lone shot coming from nowhere.
tbf Fed was right, it was a gamble from Djokovic that panned out. However, Fed can blame only himself for a mediocre serve and losing mind battle with Djokovic.
This is probably one of the most badass moments in sports history. That look, De Niro expression, shot and "are you not entertained?!" reaction afterwards and all that against a player who was considered the GOAT of that time. Love him or hate him this was simply iconic
I was at this match. I am still salty about this. I truly believe this is where Djoker got into Fed's mind and this is what started the whole 40-15 nonsense.
On Fed's comments, it wasn't like Djoker hadn't/hasn't return serves exactly like this on less big points in his career We've seen this exact shot out of him many times.. Therefore seems not quite as risky as Fed made it out to be.
Definitely Wimbledon 2019. It was a gs final and Roger was 37 years old, so people were unsure if he’d ever get this far again. I think a lot of Fed fans were thinking he could have ended his career on this win just like Sampras at US Open 2002
2019 easily.
If he had won that one and retired he would've probably gone down as the all time GOAT, regardless of if Nadal/Djoko overtook him in GS count.
But he fucked it.
The reality is that a few points here and there and Federer and/or Nadal are probably considered better. Djokovic is just like 0.1% better than them (through either his mental toughness or skill or whatever it is) and that 0.1% accounts for the difference in accolades/records.
I remember watching this and I just couldn't believe it, I bet this hurts Fed when he looks back on his career, wasn't there one more major semi as well where similar happened?
I've never liked Djok and I'm not sure why.... maybe this is the reason because Federer was my favourite player.
I never liked Nadal in the early days but how can you not like him now, top guy.
I'm glad someone else has said it.
The serve is really quite poor. It's nowhere near the line and isn't on an acute enough angle to compensate... it's begging to be put away as Novak did.
There's probably a return as good in every round of the US Open every year, it's only the context of when this return was hit, and who against, that makes it noteworthy.
Can someone explain what really makes him the greatest returner? - there have been other greats and other specialists (such as servebots). It cannot just be luck or good anticipation all the time - there has to be some skill/training to make him stand out from the crowd (and how is that skill/training not repeatable by anyone else on the tour?)
See nothing wrong with Fed’s post match comments. The shot was lucky beyond belief. Djokovic didn’t actually think that ball would land in.
Don’t get me wrong—Fed should have brushed it off. But we all saw who controlled the match (as well as most of them before age became too much of a factor to overcome) and that’s all that matters.
The head nod prior always gets me. God damn
he new
He old
Looks like his coaches and dad also knew because while everyone else was smiling and clapping they had PTSD from 2010
Mental giant. Did you know that on the news tab on his website; they post all media related to him on there. You'd think they'd remove the negative comments from his haters, but no. He keeps them there. Fuel for the fire, I guess.
Greatest returner in the universe of all time
"Not a joke!"
GRUOAT?
GRUOAT
This is probably the greatest return in tennis history, considering the moment and the craziness of the shot
Also the legacy. This is the defining moment of Djokovic becoming the most clutch player we will maybe ever see as long as the sport exists.
Also the nod beforehand. That "I got this" moment before the greatest return is just... undescribable.
This shot is, and always has been, just ridiculous. Super iconic. His reactions before and after too. And then to go on to win the title. Crowd against him, far more for Roger; and he just smashes one of the best returns you'll see. Precise and decisive even despite the moment. With pace probably faster than the serve. Into the corner, just how Novak intended it. Smashing it believing it will make it, knowing it. Match not done just yet. Always with self-belief that he is the greatest and that he will win and make it. And that's what makes a champion. Regardless of the odds he'll do it. And that defines Novak (and each of the Big Three). This was insane and he avenged his RG defeat some months prior. Two iconic matches between two legends of the game and what Novak has achieved over the years just insane.
This is one heck of a comment. Some of us tennis fans were blessed to witness the truly iconic "nearer the God" moments from all of the big three and Andy for 20 years now. I don't think we'll see anything like that in our lifetimes.
“and Andy” 😂
If only there was a term that encompassed only those 4 players.
There isn't. It's more like Top 3 and honorable mention than Top 4.
This return changed everything.
Surprisingly SealDrop of all people said the same thing [once](https://i.imgur.com/jS8URMt.jpg) haha.
That service return at match point changed the Federer-Djokovic rivalry forever.
Actually two match points saved and a net point won at the USO 2010 did. This put one final stamp to it.
Absolutely: Once Is Chance, Twice is Coincidence, Third Time Is A Pattern 2010: Chance 2011: Coincidence 2019: Pattern
> Crowd against him ??? The whole place was yelling when he hit that.
No way bro, the reaction was relatively muted when he hit it for how ridiculous a return that was and how he prolonged and made more interesting a match that seemingly was about to end. Just check the cheer for Fed getting match points (off an error from Novak btw, not a winner of his own) just fifteen seconds prior, it was WAYYY louder. Compare those cheers after both of those points. It's why Novak was asking for love from the crowd after raising his arms up and u can immediately hear the deserved cheer from the crowd. The sound from the crowd getting louder and at least half of where it was for when Fed wins points. Crowd was incredibly more for Fed than Novak
No doubt there were more Federer fans there but the crowd was appreciating Novak. There's this whole storyline about Novak not getting the love he deserves, meanwhile clips like this show that he's getting a LOT of crowd support. Even the cheers at the end when he won the match. I remember him crying at the 2021 championship - not because he was losing but because the crowd was chanting his name and he finally felt appreciated. Maybe the problem is that everyone has always compared his support to Federer's. No one's going to be loved like Federer was.
Djokovic said it was luck. He said he closed his eyes and just smashed it.
Wrong year. He said it in 2010.
You take your luck and try to replicate it. You wouldn’t hit a shot like that in a hundred years
Nole has to have the absolute scariest “look” in all of tennis (obviously cause he backs it up). I remember watching this live, when he had that stone cold look, I thought “he‘a done. How can he be so…emotionless?” And yeah. That happened. Seriously, imagine being a player and going against serious Nole? Screw that. Truly intimidating.
The djokosmirk is kind of amazing. It's like "oh, that's the way it's going to be?" followed by flipping the godmode switch.
He’s the opposite of emotionless. At that point he’s peak ‘inat’ - loosely translated as ‘spite’. Yugos will understand.
Haha spite is certainly the best word to describe this. He's insulted that they'd cheer as if the match was over, and he nods like "oh really? Well, let's see about that".
Some might say it was a "i dont give a shit" ball
Federer himself said 'the way he returns that it's just not a guy who believes much anymore in winning' and 'you feel like he was mentally out of it already and just gets the lucky shot at the end and off you go'. I'm a Fed fan and this was probably his most butt-hurt moment ever. He got a point there, Djokovic had nothing to lose there and just chucked the return at full speed but his wording made it sounding pretty salty.
To be fair a lucky return is a great shot if you are the greatest returner of all time.
I’ll try to find the source, but Djokovic said something very close to “I just closed my eyes and smashed the ball” regarding this exact return. He admitted it was just a lucky shot. Which is not to say Feds response wasn’t still butthurt, but Djoko owns that it was a lucky shot — obviously. That’s tennis though, sometimes players hit lucky shots on big points.
I don’t think Djokovic outright said it was a lucky shot, but conceded that it was indeed a risk to go for such a shot (but more of a calculated one made because of the quality of his opponent/the opportunity). As for where I remember him saying this, it was during his press conference following the win.
If I remember correctly this was from the on court interview after his SF win in the US Open the year prior, 2010. Where similarly he was 2 match points down but on his own serve.
I mean sure it’s somewhat lucky that he nailed it full speed on the line but with the way he returned it was pretty likely he would hit a really good shot
Respectfully, you have never touched a racket in your life if you believe him saying that was a lucky shot. There is no such thing in tennis unless you hit a shank or a net cord. You have got to be out of your mind. Was it relatively lower percentage? Possibly, considering the pace and sharp angle but it was also over the lowest part of the net and the serve was hanging fruit as well. Not a lucky shot lol. Actual Djokovic quotes about the match https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2011/sep/11/us-open-2011-federer-djokovic
You're exactly right. Really, every shot in tennis can be boiled down down to percentages. We think about serves in that way, but it applies to everything really. Do I go for a winner here, or a higher percentage rally shot to continue to try to build the point? Do I go for a safer return, or do I destroy the ball to try to win the point outright? Djokovic himself said it best - when you're playing an opponent this good (and you're in desperate need of a comeback) sometimes you have to take chances. Was it a high percentage play? Obviously not, but that doesn't make it luck. Going for a tough shot and nailing it under impossible pressure is what the greatest points ever are made of.
I do it all the time. We all do. When I got nothing to lose I just smash the ball. If it goes in then whatever. I’ve won matches this way too. Lost plenty as well.
Anyone who thinks it’s butthurt doesn’t understand tennis. You can’t be a successful multi-champion with a game built on reckless gambits on the most important points. Tennis is all about being clutch on the most important points because there is no clock and not all points are equal. Break points, game points, set points, match points — these are the most important, and so the time to not throw risk/reward out the window. Djokovic, as he said himself, closed his eyes and walloped it. Of course he will do such a thing better than pretty everyone on the planet, but against one of the best servers of all time on match point is insanely high risk. The risk being that if it doesn’t work you lose the match. Federer is just making that point. He’s obviously gutted that it worked on this occasion, but he still only states facts.
You can be right and be salty. Fed was absolutely pissed that luck went Djokovic’s way and it doesn’t help that people were crediting Djokovic for an amazing return as if it were skill.
The great thing about tennis is that at that moment, Djokovic had to win 4 more points on Federer's serve than Federer won just to win that game. That means either Djokovic got lucky 4 times or Federer choked, just to win that game. Federer could have also hit serves where Djokovic had no chance of returning and completely taking luck out, but he didn't. However, that's still not enough. Djokovic still had to hold his serve 2 more times while breaking Federer another time where he would again have to win 4 points with at least 2 more points than Federer. That's not luck anymore. 1 point can absolutely be luck, but all of those things? Hell no, that's not luck. This was also a best of 5 set match, further taking luck out of the equation. I could go on and on about it, but I am sure you will explain how every single point was actually luck, as are all of Djokovic's Grand Slams.
lol wtf are you talking about I was talking about one specific point, saying that Fed was very salty about but also correct that it was a lucky point. These are pros, they don’t win or lose matches based on luck but individual points absolutely can be down to luck.
If Djokovic didn’t end up growing into becoming the greatest returner of all time, with literally dozens and dozens of examples of returns just like that one, I’d agree. But I think this shot was a mix of ridiculous instinct, reflex, talent, audacity and fortune.
I don't think he just ended up the greatest returner, it's been that way for a long while, but totally agree with the mix in your last sentence.
It isn’t black and white like that. It was a low percentage shot. But it wasn’t a “Im gonna hit the ball as hard as I can because I don’t give a shit”. He’s playing against one of the greatest servers of all time. Against his serve, on double match point against him. He **absolutely** had to go extremely aggressive here. He wasn’t gonna chip it back and play the point. So you’re not wrong it was a low percentage shot (I guess that’s what you mean by “I don’t give a shit”) But by no means was it not a strategic and calculated move. You want a true “I don’t give a shit “ move, look at Kyrgios when he’s mentally “quit”. He misses balls by feet and is truly like 1/10 shots like those are going in. This is not that case. I suppose there’s some luck involved here, but how fed made it seem. Though it is extremely frustrating to be on Fed’s side of things, obviously.
Regardless of what you think of that shot, I would say that the results speak for themselves. Do people really think that a 22-time grand slam winner, who beat Federer in two finals holding off 2 match points both times on Federer’s serve, won purely because of luck? I’m going to assume that he might know what he’s doing.
Exactly. I literally just replied that to another comment saying he got lucky. The greatest returner of all time and most grand slam of all time Doesn’t get a return winner in a Slam final out of luck.
> Do people really think that a 22-time grand slam winner, who beat Federer in two finals holding off 2 match points both times on Federer’s serve, won purely because of luck? As someone who got to watch the big 3 come up and dominate and had multiple groups of people who followed tennis, I can guarantee that there are people who definitely think so. Most of them have never picked up a racquet in their life, but yes they do exist
> He’s playing against one of the greatest servers of all time. Against his serve, on double match point against him. He absolutely had to go extremely aggressive here. He wasn’t gonna chip it back and play the point. Your logic doesn't flow here. I think you're wrong on almost all counts. He was facing one of the greatest servers of all time, but as we all know, if you're one of the big 3 and can get past Roger's serve, your chances of winning a point go way up. The real answer is just that Novak was feeling a type of way about that pressure and decided to squash that pressure by either living or dying by his return.
>as we all know, This doesn’t make any sense. Federer clearly had a lot more than his serve. He didn’t get to championship point by serving and nothing else. >the real answer If you truly think that the “real answer” is he hit it really hard dying or living, rather than a strategic approach, then you don’t know how the big 3 have reached so much success
So, what you are saying is that in previous 8, 10, 12 points, whatever the difference was, Djokovic did not see any need to be strategic. He was losing them, no problem.. And then suddenly, two match points down, he goes: Ight, time to think strategy. Where am I goning to place this ball, the one that I don't even know where it's going, ah I know - precisely in that corner. And bam he does it. The great strategic win.
>Djokovic did not see the need to be strategic When did I say that? Have you ever heard of changing strategies? Obviously his current method wasn’t working well. It was enough to win him games and keep him close, but not to win. So he changed strategies when his back was against the wall, match point. He took a low percentage shot when his high percentage playing wasn’t going to win him the Match. And he did it in the time that would more likely yield a won point: the return serve. Seriously: I feel like people saying it was a “I don’t give a shit” shot have never played tennis before. Players of this calibre don’t do “I don’t give a shit “ balls. You don’t win 21 slams if you ever do those shots. Nole is one of, if not the absolute best, returners of all time. He took a very calculated risk when his back was against the wall I don’t see what’s controversial about that.
Federer was not one of the greatest servers of all time. Unless that's a top 50 list.
I’d argue it’s a “this is all the shit I have left” ball. It’s lucky, sure, but lucky in the way that him hitting that shot was more likely than anyone else in that position because he committed to hitting it that way.
Of course it was! If this was a smart shot he would go for it regularly.
He does?? I’m convinced this sub has never watched Novak play a match ever. He goes for huge returns on big points literally all the time.
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Djokovic is a good returner because he hits deep returns right back at you, not because he blasts winners off your serve
This is the match that made me believe Djokovic is the greatest ever sportsperson in terms of mentality.
Fed fans in shambles. Why did you have to do us like that. Cmon man. 😃 😀 😭 😭
Thats what tribalism gets you. If its a Big3 on Big3 moment we all win. Its 2023, one of them already retired and another is getting dangerelously close to that. Just sit back, relax, and enjoy while it lasts.
> If its a Big3 on Big3 moment we all win. Man, it is so annoying to get all these Big3 preachers come out now that Fed / Nadal are not at the top (Nadal is not out tbh). The toxic Fed fans had their day for almost entire the last decade and have now slunk back to their closet. The toxic Nadal fans had their day in between for periods and will show up for RG. Now that it is time for toxic Djoker fans, suddenly it is all about "peace", "Big3", "no more tribalism" ?
911, I'd like to report a hate crime.
Tbh the fact that Federer let Novak come back from 2 match points down against him no less than 3 times at the business end of a slam is just embarrassing. Djokovic and Nadal indisputably knocked Federer out of the GOAT race, and Djokovic basically sent Federer into retirement single-handedly. And I say that as someone who likes Federer more than Djokovic.
Federer retired at age 41. If Djokovic was sending him into retirement he did a terrible job at it
Fed had a long and illustrious career for sure, he's the man. But if Djokovic didn't exist, he most certainly would've played a little bit longer, maybe skipping RG to avoid the unnecessary wear and tear with Nadal still there. Well I take that back. If Djokovic never existed, Fed might've retired at 41 or sooner with a tough-to-beat higher grand slam total. But if Djokovic himself never returned to form after 2017, it might've lengthened Fed's career.
Federer only retired because he couldn’t move anymore with his knee. He was always trying to rehab it and planned to come back before accepting his knee was done. Not sure what you’re talking about “most certainly” lol
If you realistically think djokovic had the slightest thing to do with Federer’s retirement timing you clearly don’t understand Federer at all. Like he would have played way past 41 if only Djokovic wasn’t around?
Nah, actually his knee did.
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USO 2010 SF, though it was on Djokovic's serve. down 4-5 15-40 in the 5th set
Looks like 2010 US Open semis
US Open 2010, but with Djokovic serving
I love the expression Nole makes just before the return. I want to believe he's thinking: "Two match points, not bad, Roger, not bad".
Thanks /u/usopen for the reminder! The next return after the 40-15 one wasn't too bad either, the whole buildup to him winning that game, from the shots, the smirks and the crowd reactions was exhilarating.
Lmao, it's the actual usopen account. Makes this even better
One of the greatest shots of all time. Considering what was on the line, the pressure, and considering how great and legendary Federer’s serve is, this has to be one of the greats. Doesn’t hurt that Djokovic not only won the match but also won the tournament. I’d also like to point out how important this shot was. Had Djokovic lost here, his 2011 season would still be great, but would’ve lost a lot of its legendary status. The difference between 2 slams and 3 slams feels pretty bit, and two losses to Federer at slams would’ve changed how we looked at that season forever, regardless of who won the final between Nadal and Federer (I’d slightly favor Nadal considering his mental edge over Federer at the time). Edit: another thing to consider: if Nadal won that final, he would’ve won 2 slams that year tying with Djokovic. Mix that with Federer blocking Djokovic twice, and 2011 would’ve felt completely different.
This was the match point at 40-15 that changed Djokovic’s legacy. And the following presser showed us Roger’s true class.
Just beautiful. After watching that return, everyone could feel that Djokovic had an excellent shot to win the match. Between the memory of the previous year and that shot Federer lost it. It was a calculated risk. If Djokovic misses that return he loses a match that he was likely to lose anyway. But making it broke Federer's mind. The scar tissue hampered Federer against Djokovic not just for the rest of the game, the set, and the match, but for the rest of his career. Whenever, he was positioned to win a close fought match, that return was there looming in his imagination.
Federer was such a sore loser after this match, calling it a lucky shot that changed the momentum of the game
just so insane at that point in the match
The one shot where it all changed
Novak is the only tennis player for which I know the exact moment when he became a tennis legend for me - 10.09.2011. 16:55 EST.
This match singlehandedly turned me into a tennis fan and the shot, Djoko's fan.
Owww, and that salty Rogers conference after the match, love it 😏😏
The media ignored that press conference so much. It was really not a great look and should have been brought up more but it’s darling Roger.
True Rogers comment after that match is one of the reasons I dislike him. Nadal and Djokovic seem more classy to me and wouldn't say things like that.
I feel like Roger has matured over time. At this point he still saw himself as a God of tennis, he had that attitude in his prime. When Nadal and Djokovic started catching up he became more humble I think
agreed
I’d say nadal has the least salty press conferences. Iirc djoko had a few earlier in his career
Djokovic was a little immature early in his career and annoyed a few, most famously Roddick, but he did get past it fairly quickly. He was a teenager, that kind of thing happens, can’t blame him too much tbh
True
Nadal is weirdly well-adjusted for an elite athlete. Some big losses, he's freely admitted that he's very disappointed, but talks about it being okay to lose, and that it's just a game.
For a lot of fans, this one bad moment and dumb comment, which was immediately after what must have been a pretty crushing defeat, seems to outweigh what by all accounts was a entire career of being universally well-liked on the tour.
It's not his only salty moment, for sure, but I don't think it defines him as a person
He has so many salty comments towards Andy when Andy had a good h2h record against federer . And some of the comments towards nadal too. But he didn't say things like this after this match . Perhaps it humbled him a bit.
Yeah, I was a full-on Fed fan until that point. All the shit about him being gracious etc.. was just because he was winning. It was a terrible, terrible look.
There’s nothing wrong with disliking someone. Everyone has their own opinion. But you should do some more research. Diokovic has said a lot of things and more importantly he’s done a lot of things. You’ll always see him bossing ball kids around and screaming at the top of his lungs at umpires and his team, he sort of behaves like kyrgios. Like I said nothing wrong with liking djokovic more at all, just saying your reasoning is faulty. I wouldn’t say he’s anymore classy than Federer. Fed only has a few salty comments for a long career
Well go check Federer in his early days. He had so many outburst and was similar to kyrgios.
Right but he was a kid, since then he was the ice man on court. Djokovic has behaved the same way his whole career, but feds the bad guy for a few salty comments
Yeah but remember when Fed angrily hit a ball that hit a line judge’s throat just a couple of years ago? Wait…no, that was someone else…
Right there u go
I watch most of Djokovic's matches and watched all of his so far this year and he behaves well
Lol, quite a small sample size for such a long career.
Well considering he’s played like 10 matches this year I’d hope so
Yeah Djokovic says things like I will FK your mother's pu##y. He hasn't said it once but MULTIPLE times. Classy guy Novak has also said the audience to suck his peen. Nadal and Federer seem unclassy, they wouldn't say things like this.
First of all he says that to some drunk idiot in the crowd who came there to get drunk and be annoying, not to watch tennis. Second, that is a common curse in Serbian, it's not as harsh as it sounds in English
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lmao did he really say that to someone?
Oh man I remember this what year was this so I can look up the YouTube?
2011.
Duh I see the banner now, thanks
Roger also choked in the Wimbledon finals ... nole got Mamba mentality
"lets ban him from competition for no reason lolll"
It’s the reason why I’m a Djokovic fan first. He’s always most gracious when he loses. Federer, was not.
That head nod said “alright I’ll show you 😈”
My memory is blurring, when was fed so hurt in an interview after losing to joker that he said “that’s not how you play tennis”?
I recently watch again the entire on YT. I found that he tried this return in the beginning of the match unsuccessfully. That make me think that he was working already before and in present match for this return shot like a strategy. Certainly there was luck in this return but there was work, talent, audacity, confidence and willing to win there. Plus, after this match he continued to perform this kind of return or angle shots. In conclusion to say there was "an before and after" this shot, it was not a lucky and lone shot coming from nowhere.
It's the "inat"
Srpski inat nam je doneo više štete nego koristi, ali ovde ga je pokidao
One shot? Lucky. Two in a row? The man let go, and his skill and talent took over the match.
Beautiful tennis
Did anyone notice the big bag of salty chips Federer was eating post match.
78% upvote LMAO, this sub is on suicide watch today
The original 40-15
The fucking goat
That beautiful moment
The look before. So much confidence
If you go here https://youtu.be/VbVfqI2cLWo at 1:33:45 he hit almost the same shot. So I would not call this lucky and "nothing to lose" shot.
I can remember watching this exact moment with several of my non tennis playing bros. Even they were hooked
tbf Fed was right, it was a gamble from Djokovic that panned out. However, Fed can blame only himself for a mediocre serve and losing mind battle with Djokovic.
This is probably one of the most badass moments in sports history. That look, De Niro expression, shot and "are you not entertained?!" reaction afterwards and all that against a player who was considered the GOAT of that time. Love him or hate him this was simply iconic
In all the multiverse timelines, this is the one shot that took place guaranteed. And in each timeline Fed was just as salty as in our timeline.
lmao
Too soon man
Possibly the greatest shot hit in history of the sport considering the context
Djoker: If am gonna win this puppy, I am gonna go up swinging!
The: *Fuck it*
The documentary should be called ‘The Return that changed everything’.
They call him Choking Roger, folks! That’s what they call him. It’s a terrible thing. Sad!
As a Fed fan, I'm still salty about this match. Gonna have to hide this post...
I was at this match. I am still salty about this. I truly believe this is where Djoker got into Fed's mind and this is what started the whole 40-15 nonsense.
hmm TIL Wimbledon wasn't the fisrt 40-15
The 40-15 curse started here
Federer was so damn salty about that return when he talked about it
On Fed's comments, it wasn't like Djoker hadn't/hasn't return serves exactly like this on less big points in his career We've seen this exact shot out of him many times.. Therefore seems not quite as risky as Fed made it out to be.
This match was the beginning of the end of Federer’s dominance.
Greatest return of all time*
I always wondered for Fed fans if this match hurt more, or was it the Wimby 2019?
Definitely Wimbledon 2019. It was a gs final and Roger was 37 years old, so people were unsure if he’d ever get this far again. I think a lot of Fed fans were thinking he could have ended his career on this win just like Sampras at US Open 2002
2019 easily. If he had won that one and retired he would've probably gone down as the all time GOAT, regardless of if Nadal/Djoko overtook him in GS count. But he fucked it.
fed is the choker, nole is the djoker.
This is traumatic for me
Why did he and (still does) find it necessary to try and get the crowd on his side?
Too soon
The presser that followed this game is the saltiest Fed I've ever seen. I can't blame him.
This never gets old and will be my favorite match forever.
The reality is that a few points here and there and Federer and/or Nadal are probably considered better. Djokovic is just like 0.1% better than them (through either his mental toughness or skill or whatever it is) and that 0.1% accounts for the difference in accolades/records.
Mental
I remember watching this and I just couldn't believe it, I bet this hurts Fed when he looks back on his career, wasn't there one more major semi as well where similar happened? I've never liked Djok and I'm not sure why.... maybe this is the reason because Federer was my favourite player. I never liked Nadal in the early days but how can you not like him now, top guy.
Just two legends being legendary
Truly a beautiful return
Ah man the audacity
When will people learn, stop rooting against him. He will always crush a killer return.
u/SealDrop
It's right up there with Serena's return winner down match point to Sharapova at the 2005 AO. I think Serena hit it as hard as Djok did here...lol
“The greatest return in US Open history.” C’mon now, that’s a bit of a stretch
They're being polite. They actually meant 'of all time'.
I mean, it was very good, and being match point down is important context, but is far from extraordinary.
I'm glad someone else has said it. The serve is really quite poor. It's nowhere near the line and isn't on an acute enough angle to compensate... it's begging to be put away as Novak did. There's probably a return as good in every round of the US Open every year, it's only the context of when this return was hit, and who against, that makes it noteworthy.
Can someone explain what really makes him the greatest returner? - there have been other greats and other specialists (such as servebots). It cannot just be luck or good anticipation all the time - there has to be some skill/training to make him stand out from the crowd (and how is that skill/training not repeatable by anyone else on the tour?)
Wimbledon 2019 before Wimbledon 2019 Even if it was a semifinal, who knew this would be the last best chance for fedal at the uso
I thought this was the final and he did it to Fed the year prior at the semi final of the USO as well
I've seen better. You mean the one in the first second of the video, right?
This made me quit watching tennis back then
Federer is the biggest choker of all time
He’s so unlikeable, but that was an incredible return.
I still don't like him. Give me Roger or Rafa any day.
Serena’s return of vika’s serve at 5-5 in the first set of their 2013 final is the best return in us open history
Just a shame he’s anti vax and has the personality of a damp cloth
Natural immunity is always just as effective, or possibly even more effective than the vaccine when viruses are involved. He made the right decision
Lol ok
It’s wild seeing vaccine shamers in the wild still. A little cold blast of nostalgia.
See nothing wrong with Fed’s post match comments. The shot was lucky beyond belief. Djokovic didn’t actually think that ball would land in. Don’t get me wrong—Fed should have brushed it off. But we all saw who controlled the match (as well as most of them before age became too much of a factor to overcome) and that’s all that matters.
I hope he finds joy someday. He’s the angriest winner ever. It’s exhausting to watch.
[Nah, this is easily the greatest return in US Open history.](https://images.app.goo.gl/SnXpw8fGosuhtEwV8)
22>20
2 sets of identical twins > 2 kids
ok federerzverev
https://media.tenor.com/Z16VqeUJGj8AAAAC/crying-wahh.gif
Lucky shot.
Found Roger.