Gilles Simon does not have a flattering head-to-head record against Novak Djokovic. The now-retired French player won only one match against Novak after clashing with the former world number 1 12 times.
During a recent interview with Court Number one Podcast on RMC, Gilles criticized some top players about their tactics against Djokovic. Novak is known to be almost impossible to beat when playing on the baseline. However, things are completely different when he is caught playing near the net.
Simon commented: “What I don’t understand when I watch Novak Djokovic’s matches is why his opponents don’t prey on his weaknesses. The Serbian is not that strong near the net and almost always gets into trouble when he has to smash. Sometimes he misses it.”
“We have had 20 years to notice this! I saw the match between Djokovic and Tsitsipas in Bercy, where it was a couple of points that made the difference,” he added.
“If the Greek had played the decisive points in another way, maybe he would have won. If you force your rival to play in areas of the court he doesn’t like, he will make more mistakes and lose confidence even in his strong areas. It surprises me that you can get your tactics wrong against players you’ve seen play a million times,” concluded Simon.
Novak Djokovic in 2022
Ranked no.
5, the Serbian played his last match on the 20th of November when he overcame world no.3 Casper Ruud 7-5 6-3 in the final in the Nitto ATP Finals to win his 91st career title.Until now, during this year Novak has achieved a compiled 42-7 record. The Serbian clinched 5 titles in 2022 in Rome, Wimbledon, Tel Aviv, Astana and the Nitto ATP Finals. Novak was the runner-up in Belgrade and Paris.
Gilles Simon in 2022
At the moment ranked no.143, the French player played his last match on the 3rd of November when he was defeated by world no.6 Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-1 6-3 in the 3rd round in Paris (draw).
This season the French player has managed to achieve a composed 25-29 record.
Novak Djokovic and Gilles Simon faced off 12 times. The head to head is 11-1 for Djokovic. Previously, the last time they fought against each other, Novak Djokovic won 6-3 3-6 7-5 in the 2nd round in Monte-Carlo (Monte) in April 2017.
Novak Djokovic and Gilles Simon |
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