Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer have been battling all over the world for a couple of decades. Most of the time the 2 tennis legends have clashed in slams or top competitions for their “own glory.” However, Djokovic and Federer are also strongly committed to their countries, and representing them at the Olympic games is a privilege. Both Novak and Roger are seriously committed to having a good run at the upcoming Olympic Games in Tokyo that will take place in 2021 after being postponed for one year because of the Coronavirus pandemic.
Djokovic and the quest for Gold
Novak has always been particularly attached to his country. The Serbian sensation revealed that when he wasn’t yet famous (and rich) he decided to refuse a lucrative proposal of playing for the UK.
Even if Djokovic has won all sorts of titles, for some reasons he couldn’t win a gold medal at an Olympics. He managed to conquer a bronze in Beijing back in 2008 after he lost a heartbreaking semifinal against Rafael Nadal.
During a recent interview with the ITF, Novak commented:
“It is one of the dreams, of course. I don’t want to be ungrateful for winning bronze, because that was also a big success. I made the semis in London but lost there for third place as well, but I always find an extra motivation to perform at my best when I’m representing my country, especially at the Olympic Games, as we all know it’s the most historical sports event.
Having the opportunity to be surrounded by elite athletes from their sports and get a chance to see them compete at the highest sporting event is an honor. It’s a privilege. Hopefully, I can draw some strength from there and I can be in good form and have a chance to fight for a medal.”
Federer trying to win another medal
Talking to SRF program “Sportpanorama plus”, Roger also revealed that his goal is to win a medal in Tokyo.
“Of course I want a medal there. No matter whether in single, double or mixed,” he said.
Roger is currently recovering after he had a double procedure to his right knee. The Swiss sensation is due to be back to competitions in January on the occasion of the Australian Open. Roger has already won a gold medal back in 2008 when he won the doubles alongside his dear friend Stan Wawrinka. Federer has always stated that that was one of the best memories of his fantastic career.
Novak Djokovic in 2020
Ranked world no.1, Djokovic played his last match on the 29th of February when he beat Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3 6-4 in the final in Dubai to win his 79th career title.
At the moment, this season the Serbian has a 18-0 win-loss record. Djokovic has won 2 titles in 2020 at the Australian Open and in Dubai.
Roger Federer in 2020
Now ranked no.4, the Swiss played his last match on the 30th of January when he surrendered to Novak Djokovic 7-61 6-4 6-3 in the semifinal of the Australian Open.
Roger Federer’s most significant performance of this season was reaching the semi-finals at the Australian Open.
Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer played each other 50 times. The head to head is 27-23 for Djokovic. The last time that they locked horns, Novak Djokovic won 7-61 6-4 6-3 in the semifinal in Melbourne (Australian Open) on the 30th of January 2020.
