Ivanisevic on coaching Tsitsipas: He has always been in the top 10

Ivanisevic took charge of Greece's Tsitsipas after the clay season this year, and the Croatian, who was once ranked second in the ATP, miraculously won Wimbledon 2001 as a wild card after falling to No. 125 after a trough of form and injury. He then coached Novak Djokovic between 2018 and 2024, helping the Serbian king win 12 Grand Slam titles. Now, as a coach, he hopes to use his extensive experience at the top to help Tsitsipas return to the top – a group he firmly believes the new disciple already belongs to.

Ivanisevic (right)

"In my opinion, he's always been in the top 10," Ivanisevic said in an interview with the ATP's official website, saying that he was looking forward to working with Tsitsipas, "and at the moment he's lost a little bit of his edge, and after a lot of changes, he needs to get it back." I'm not a magician who can do miracles in a week, it's a long-term process, but he's a two-time Grand Slam runner-up with so many brilliant victories and I'm not worried about him not getting back to his top form. "

At this week's ATP 500 Harley grass, Ivanisevic watched Tsitsipas and Echeverry train for the first time since the French Open partnership. Tsitsipas will face Dardry in the first round of the Men's Singles as he looks to turn around his 18-11 run this season.

"His personality appeals to me," Ivanisevic said of his motivation for the collaboration, adding, "Greeks and Croats have similar personalities. I appreciate his aggressive style of play and his style of play has always been to my liking. As a serve-and-net player, I'm excited to be able to advise him on his technique, which is also a big challenge for me. "

Tsitsipas data map

On the eve of the grass season, Tsitsipas welcomed arguably the most senior grass experts in the field. In addition to winning Wimbledon in 2001 and being runner-up three times, Ivanisevic has also coached Djokovic to three Wimbledon titles. Despite Tsitsipas' 22-17 grass court record (2022 Mallorca title) is a bit lackluster, Ivanisevic is confident that the player, known for his powerful serve and attack, has full potential on grass.

"He has a lot of room for improvement," he analysed, "overall, his results on grass are average, I don't know why, I think it can only be a matter of mentality, if you always think, 'I'm not good at grass', then you can never play well." The grass will not be tolerant to you, if you are angry with the grass, then it will not be kind to you either, you have to face the grass with a positive attitude. I can't say he's going to break through this week, but he can be a great grass player. "

(Compiled by Faye Wong, Photo/Visual China)