Tim Henman claims Novak Djokovic showed “where he is at mentally” with post-match outburst

The Serb lost his cool following questions over his conduct after he hit the ball into the crowd during his victory over Dominic Thiem at the O2.

Tim Henman claimed Novak Djokovic showed “where he is at mentally” with his angry outbursts at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals.

The world No.2 hit a ball into the crowd in frustration after losing the first set of his opening match – and then petulantly responded to questioning in his press conference.

Former British No.1 Henman was famously disqualified from Wimbledon in 1995 for hitting a ballgirl with a ball in a fit of rage during a doubles match.

And the BBC analyst claimed Djokovic’s mistake wasn’t to lose his temper in the heat of battle – it was his tetchy post-match reaction.

“If it had hit someone then he would be have been disqualified,” Henman said.

“If he had just said, ‘You know, it was a mistake, I shouldn’t have done it. I was lucky I got away with it but it won’t happen again’, the story has gone.

“It is very surprising for a man of his experience but it does emphasis where he is mentally at the moment.”

Djokovic held all four Grand Slam titles after his defeat of Andy Murray at the French Open and led the Scot by more than 8,000 points at the top of the rankings.

But after a turbulent few months, his 122-week reign as world No.1 ended in Paris and now he needs to better Murray’s result at The O2 to end the year as the top-ranked player.

Murray’s former coach Miles Maclagan said: “He (Djokovic) has been frustrated in the second half of the season. He hasn’t quite been himself. I was shocked with what I saw.

“He’s definitely not himself.”

Djokovic was more like his old self after losing his first ever set to Dominic Thiem and lost only two more games in the match.

He will next face Kei Nishikori on Tuesday after the world No.5 beat US Open champion Stan Wawrinka 6-2 6-3 in only 67 minutes.

And the Swiss said: “Coming into the tournament, Novak wasn’t playing that good. But, again, it’s the World Tour Final. It’s a group qualification to make the semi-final. Novak won the first yesterday. Everything starts from zero.

“It was already an interesting match yesterday, watching Novak playing, winning, finding a better game than I think he played in the last few months.”

More games: friv

Novak Djokovic plays down US Open injury concerns after laboured victory over Jerzy Janowicz

In a moment of theatricality you would never see at Wimbledon, Phil Collins opened the first evening session on Arthur Ashe Stadium with two of his best-known songs. After that, the only thing “In The Air Tonight” was a sense of vulnerability about tournament favourite Novak Djokovic.

Djokovic has been plagued by physical pains and “private issues” in the months since his personal epiphany at the French Open, and in last night’s opener against Jerzy Janowicz he showed his hand early by calling the trainer at the second changeover.

A medical time-out ensued, in which the surprising thing was that Djokovic requested treatment on his right elbow rather than the sore left wrist which he had identified as the reason for his absence from Cincinnati a fortnight ago.

Novak Djokovic celebrates after his victory over Jerzy Janowicz at the US Open.

Whatever the problem was, it didn’t seem to prevent Djokovic from serving accurately – the key skill that carried him to a 6-3, 5-7, 6-2, 6-1 victory in 2hr 37min. But his all-round game was well short of its usual rhythm and self-assurance, and he dropped the second set via a slew of uncharacteristic errors.

Janowicz is not the most dangerous of opponents at the moment, judging by his world ranking of No. 247 and a record that shows his last ATP-level victory to have come in October. But he still rattled Djokovic with his unpredictable play, which featured numerous drop-shots as well as plenty of all-or-nothing wallops.

Janowicz’s ball-striking was never going to be consistent enough to score a win here, barring a total collapse from his opponent. But Jiri Vesely, the left-handed Czech who beat him in Monte Carlo in April, could prove a more challenging opponent for Djokovic in the second round.

Asked by the on-court interviewer about his medical time-out, Djokovic started by making a joke of the issue. “It was hard to put up a show after Phil Collins,” he replied, “but you know he’s a legend.” He then broke into a verse of “I Can’t Dance” from Genesis’s back catalogue, before finally engaging with the question when it was put to him a second time.

“It’s never easy to play at this level throughout the year,” said Djokovic. “There are periods when you are not feeling 100 per cent but I don’t think it’s necessary to talk about this now. I just take it day by day, and let’s keep on going.

“It was overall a good performance, particularly in the third and fourth sets, even if the first couple of sets were a bit up and down. Jerzy has an unpredictable serve. When the ball is going that speed you just react and pray that you can get it back.”

Novak Djokovic to turn the switch for the hardcourt season

The Serb, 29, cut his ties with tennis for a while following his early-exit at Wimbledon.

During the first half of 2016 season, all the highlights regarding tennis achievements were mostly related toNovak Djokovic. His consistency over the various tournaments whether it was hardcourt (Doha, Australian Open, Indian Wells, Miami), or clay (Monte-Carlo, Madrid, Rome, Roland Garros) brought him lots of trophies and also worldwide recognition. Then, it followed Wimbledon Championships, a syncope that few saw it coming. Still the Serb remains the leader of the ATP ranking in both rankings ( ATP Tour and ATP Race). One thing needs clearing: Djokovic played only big tournaments, namely Masters 1000 and Grand Slam with one sole exception- Doha.

Rio Olympics detour.

There are many players who chose not to play in Rio due to the inappropriate date.The Olympics cuts the American hardcourt season right in two. The organisers tried to please the vast majority by choosing also a hardcourt surface to play on. On top of this Zyka virus remains a major concern. The other days, top players like Milos Raonic or Tomas Berdych officially announced that they`ll not compete in Rio. On the same page is also Simona Halep. Though, Djokovic is expected to make a glorious run in Rio. It might be his best chance to clinch the golden medal in men`s singles. As he is already heading to 30, in 4 years from now, he might be too old to accomplish something big. The Serb`s best result at the Olympics occurred back in 2008 at Beijing when he finished the third winning the bronze medal. For Djokovic, 12 times Grand Slam winner, this fact is rather unsatisfactory.

Djokovic has few things to worry about in the near future.

When it comes to future of the ATP ranking, some majors changes are unlikely to occur throughout this season. Djokovic has around 5000 points ahead of Andy Murray. Still, there is one scenario which might bring in some extra heat. In the late August, the last Grand Slam of the year will catch the attention. Although it sounds unlikely, if Djokovic will suffer one more early exit as at Wimbledon happened andAndy Murray will win the gap will come down to less than 1000 points. Last year, the Serb won at the US Open by beating Roger Federer in the final rubber thus having to defend 2000 points. Murray lost in the 4th round, so the pressure is something easier to fight with.

Overall, Novak Djokovic dominated the past years on the ATP tour like no one did. If Wimbledon was just a syncope, it`s something to be seen over the following months. The Serb has both mental and physical strength to move forward and also to win other Masters ,Majors, gold medals and so on.

Why Djokovic will increase his chokehold on the game

At age 28, top-ranked Novak Djokovic is at the zenith of his powers. He's fresh off a year in which he won three Grand Slam titles, bringing his total to 10 -- more than such stalwarts as Jimmy Connors, John McEnroe, Ivan Lendl and more than his own "supercoach," Boris Becker.

Last year, Djokovic came within one match of sweeping all four Grand Slam singles titles -- a feat that even his WTA counterpart Serena Williams could not match in her own spectacular 2015.

Djokovic has assembled a loyal, low-key, brutally effective support team. He's a dutiful husband and doting dad. His personal life is not only in order, it's in complete harmony with his professional one.

Last year, Djokovic's principal rivals were unable to contain him. Rafael Nadal misplaced his game, while Roger Federer floated like a butterfly and stung like a bee, but never landed a deadly punch as Djokovic increased his chokehold on the ATP game.

Looking ahead to 2016, the question occurs: Where does he go from here? What do you do for an encore after a year in which you all but ran the table, compiling a record of 82-6 with 11 titles?

You do the hardest thing, which is more of the same. And then some.

"Grand Slams and Olympic Games are the priority of the season, but it's a long season, so I can't really predict what's going to happen or guarantee if I am going to win any of the Grand Slams or all four," Djokovic told reporters shortly after he arrived in Qatar to play the ATP Doha event this week. "Of course, I am going to try to win every tournament and every Grand Slam that I play on, that's kind of the mindset that I have."

That's the appropriate mindset, yet even Djokovic doesn't really know what his most basic, elemental attitude will be once the balls start flying with serious intent. And that's the tricky part. A number of great players hit a wall and abruptly stopped winning major titles well before the realities of age and physical wear and tear became factors -- often taking us by complete surprise.

Bjorn Borg famously walked away from the game, an 11-time Grand Slam champ, burned out at the age of 25.

Granted, Borg was an extreme case. His rival John McEnroe played until he was 33, yet he was done as a Grand Slam singles champ by age 25 at the end of 1984.

Not to get us paranoid or anything, but that was a year during which McEnroe gorged much like Djokovic did in 2015; Mac went 82-3 with 13 titles, still the best single-season winning percentage of the Open era.

McEnroe won seven majors (he often skipped the Australian Open), as did Mats Wilander -- another great player whose run as a Grand Slam champ was surprisingly short-lived. Wilander was 24 in 1988, the year he won three majors (he lost only at Wimbledon) and finally secured the No. 1 ranking. But he quickly spiraled down and out of the game.

Stefan Edberg and Boris Becker each won six majors. But Edberg was done winning the big ones at 26, while Becker did almost all of his damage before he turned 24. He did, however, craft a resurgence that paid off with a final singles title when he was 28.

Is it possible Djokovic has spent himself, after having logged two of the greatest years on record (2011 and 2015)?

It's unlikely. If you look at the players whose reign as Grand Slam champs were compressed, only Edberg was reconciled to his role as a top player the way Djokovic is. McEnroe was a rebel, Wilander a free spirit; Becker was a discontented seeker, Borg a prodigy drowning in the quicksand of his own fame.

Djokovic is a rational, well-adjusted man who appears to cherish his place in the world, accepting it as a privilege rather than an entitlement -- or a burden. But just as important, he also has a few serendipitous, built-in circumstances and incentives that should provide him with any spark he may need as 2016 spools out.

You can start with Djokovic's relationship with the Australian Open.

Melbourne Park is usually Djokovic's launching pad. He's won the tournament four of the past five years. To fully appreciate what that means, remember that the one thing the top players all agree upon is that any year when you win a major is automatically a good year.

One reason Djokovic has borne the pressures of his position so well may be because, in winning the Australian Open, he's frequently crossed the biggest item off a player's to-do list a mere month into the new year. This would be a particularly good year for him to repeat that pattern given the twin tasks he faces within roughly sixty days of each other starting (with any luck) in early June.

If there was a silver lining for Djokovic when he lost last season's French Open final to Stan Wawrinka, it's that it left the Serb with a mission for 2016. Winning at Roland Garros remains the outstanding piece of unfinished business on Djokovic's résumé.

In fact, preparation for the French Open -- mental and emotional, if not technical and physical -- is likely to be the major underlying driver in all of Djokovic's activities long before it emerges as the main theme in tennis this spring.

However Djokovic's Parisian quest turns out, he also will have the Olympic Games to play in Rio de Janeiro less than two months (and one Wimbledon title defense) after Roland Garros.

Djokovic makes no secret of his patriotic feelings, but thus far he's won just one Olympic medal for Serbia -- a bronze in singles at the Beijing game in 2008. The tennis in Rio will be played on Djokovic-friendly hard courts, but under an Andy Murray and Roger Federer-friendly best-of-three format.

So the most surprising thing about Djokovic's 2015 is that he's still left himself plenty to do in 2016, and that's probably bad news for his rivals.

John Isner, Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic among Paris winners

PARIS -- Roger Federer finally cracked under the unrelenting serve of John Isner, losing 7-6 (3), 3-6, 7-6 (5) to the 13th-seeded American in the third round of the Paris Masters on Thursday.

Federer, a 17-time Grand Slam champion, looked as though he might grind out a win, saving all six break points and fighting back from 6-2 down in the decisive tiebreaker. But the Swiss star's resistance ended when Isner -- who had 27 aces -- hit a looping serve to his backhand.

"It's tough going out of a tournament without losing your serve," the third-seeded Federer said.

Fourteen-time major winner Rafael Nadal, seeded seventh, almost followed him through the exit door, saving a match point in a 4-6, 7-6 (6), 6-2 win against 11th-seeded Kevin Anderson of South Africa.

"Very tough match -- he served amazing. I feel very lucky to be through," Nadal said. "This type of match a couple of months ago I would not have had chances to win. In terms of mentality I [am] more calm."

Top-ranked Novak Djokovic was not at his best, either, advancing to the quarterfinals by beating 14th-seeded Gilles Simon 6-3, 7-5.

But Federer's defeat came as a genuine surprise.

Having won his sixth title of the season and 88th of his career at the Swiss Indoors on Sunday, and after racing past Italian Andreas Seppi in just 47 minutes on Wednesday, he was full of confidence.

Federer held a 5-1 record with Isner, beating him in the US Open fourth round this year.

"I thought he did very well today when he needed it," Federer said. "I thought he served great."

Federer briefly needed treatment at the start of the second set because of a sore arm but quickly recovered, insisting "it didn't affect me in the third set and it's not serious."

Isner called it one of the "top five" wins of his career.

"He's an incredible player, obviously. My favorite player and the greatest of all time," Isner said. "It was a huge win for me. I'm very proud."

Isner saved a break point in the fifth game of the third set with a deft backhand volley.

"That arguably saved the match for me," said the 30-year-old, who next faces No. 8 David Ferrer of Spain after he rallied to beat Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov 6-7 (4), 6-1, 6-4.

On Wednesday night, Anderson finished his second-round, three-set match against Austrian Dominic Thiem at 12:26 a.m. after spending 2 hours, 45 minutes on court.

This time he finished just as the clock struck midnight after 2 hours, 27 minutes on court.

But it could have been over quicker.

At 6-5 up in the tiebreak, and with Nadal on second serve, Anderson failed to finish a long rally concluded by Nadal's risky yet brilliant forehand winner into the top left corner.

The Spaniard celebrated with a yell and a fist pump, clinched the set when a rattled Anderson sent a forehand into the net and immediately broke Anderson in the third set before holding for 2-0.

Anderson fought back, however, and Nadal needed to save six break points in a grueling fourth game lasting 12 minutes.

That proved to be the end of Anderson's resistance.

After Nadal broke him again for 5-2 and clinched victory with a crisp forehand winner, the relief was evident as he tilted his head back in relief before shaking hands with the South African.

Nadal next faces No. 4 Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland, who beat Serbian Viktor Troicki 6-4, 7-5.

Earlier, Djokovic extended his winning streak to 19 matches despite dropping his serve five times.

"In sport there are days when you just lose your rhythm. You're trying a bit too much and you lose a bit of confidence," Djokovic said. "It was frustrating. ... It hasn't happened to me for a long time."

The 10-time Grand Slam champion now plays No. 5 Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic, who beat No. 9 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France 6-3, 6-4.

No. 2 Andy Murray had the easiest path to the final eight, routing David Goffin 6-1, 6-0 in a prelude to the Davis Cup final later this month.

Murray, who lost only eight points on his serve and broke the 16th-seeded Belgian five times, opens Friday's quarterfinals against No. 10 Richard Gasquet.

The Frenchman advanced when Kei Nishikori of Japan retired while trailing 7-6 (3), 4-1.

The dominance of tennis dads

Serena Williams won't be the only player who will have a calendar-year Grand Slam on the line in New York this summer. Collectively, a group of men will be attempting at the US Open to complete an unprecedented feat: The Daddy Slam.

All three of the men's singles champions at the majors this year -- Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open, Stan Wawrinka at Roland Garros and Djokovic at Wimbledon -- are fathers. Just to illustrate this golden generation is also a generation of breeders, the past two Grand Slam finals have been all-fathers contests, with Djokovic the runner-up in Paris and Roger Federer appearing on the second Sunday in London. The only man to have played in a Grand Slam final this year who isn't a father is the runner-up at the Australian Open, Andy Murray.

Such is the dominance of the dads. At Wimbledon, Djokovic joked that he advised other players to start a family if they wanted to keep up their tennis game, a quip that is almost starting to look like serious advice.

This isn't the first time fathers have won Grand Slams, with Jimmy Connors, Boris Becker and Andre Agassi among the small group of men to have been a Grand Slam champion as a dad. But never before has there been so many Grand Slam-winning fathers all on the scene at the same time, and certainly not putting together a run of titles, as the dads of 2015 have done.

There was a time when some players -- Ivan Lendl among them -- openly wondered whether it was even possible to be a father and a champion tennis player. That wondering has now stopped. Fatherhood certainly hasn't impeded this group. Both of Wawrinka's majors have come after becoming a father, while two of Federer's 17 majors -- the 2010 Australian Open and the 2012 Wimbledon Championships -- were won after the first set of twins was born in the summer of 2009 (the second set arrived last year). Djokovic now has a couple of majors as a father.

One factor behind this could be that the trend in tennis now is for players to have success when they are older, and therefore at a stage in their lives when it is more likely they have become fathers. But this is hugely individual. Who can predict how fatherhood can change the aspirations and demands in the itinerant world of professional tennis players?

Last year, Pete Sampras, who won all 14 of his Grand Slams before his children were born, told ESPN Djokovic would first need to "settle into fatherhood" before he could become truly competitive again. The reality is Djokovic has hardly lost a match since his son, Stefan, was born. This year, Djokovic has lost just three matches, and all three of those have come against tennis fathers, with losses to Ivo Karlovic in the quarterfinal of a tournament in Doha, Federer in the Dubai final and Wawrinka in the French final.

Fatherhood hasn't taken anything away from Djokovic's tennis.

"Life has changed and has changed for the better," Djokovic told ESPN.com. "But my career, and my professional approach has stayed as it was before I became a father. Thankfully, I have a wife who supports me and understands me, and I have people around me who live the dream with me, who sacrifice a lot for me to be where I am, and I'm grateful for that. We're a great team."

Before becoming a father, Djokovic sought the advice of Federer, who travels the world with his family (and who has earned Sampras' admiration for the way he has done that and remained so focused). And Djokovic has no doubt also spoken to his coach, Boris Becker, who won one of his six majors as a father. Djokovic's wife and child typically accompany the world No. 1 at the biggest events.

Being a parent of a young child can be exhausting. For Djokovic, though, it appears to be quite the opposite, saying fatherhood gives him energy.

"Knowing that you're giving your love and your time to your baby, your child, that gives you a freshness in the mind. Being a father actually gives me more energy than it takes away."

Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal put out of business by ATO's unforced error

Done it: Novak Djokovic celebrates winning the Wimbledon title against Roger Federer. Photo: Jonathan Brady

Tennis champions Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal along with thousands of other sole traders and small business have fallen victim to an overzealous push by the Tax Office to clean up its registers.

The two tennis stars were stripped of their Australian business numbers, Tax Office insiders say, as the ATO moved to rid its registers of what it believed were more than 1 million unused ABNs.

Rafael Nadal and more than 24,000 other ABN holders were still using their registrations, or intended to use them again, when they were booted off the register. Photo: AP

But Rafa, Novak and more than 24,000 other ABN holders were still using their registrations, or intended to use them again, when they were booted off the register.

The ATO says the cancellations were the result of systems functioning "normally" but insiders say the process was botched with the Tax Office, beset by deep cuts to its workforce, moving too quickly to replace discarded public servants with automated systems.

Sources close to the office say a massive backlog has developed of individuals and businesses waiting to be issued with ABNs with the Tax Office conceding there are more than 17,000 applications currently outstanding.

The two tennis champs were among a number of high profile sports people, who compete periodically in Australia, to be affected by the mix-up, tax insiders say.But the ATO, which has also been under fire after its online tax return system failed to cope with the recent end-of-financial-year rush, says it is meeting its targets for issuing ABNs and ABRs with 93 per cent processed on time.

"This has come about because the organisation is trying, poorly, to automate processes due to
budget and staff cuts," one source told Fairfax Media.

"Someone didn't figure that there are non-resident clients who only lodge business activity statements statements every now and then.

"The sports people along with plenty of others were picked up with the sweep.

"ABR processing is a big mess."

An ATO spokesman said the ATO's systems did not specifically identify a taxpayer as an international sports star and would not confirm that Djokovic and Nadal had been booted off the register.

"We do not specifically identify high profile sportspersons so are not able to comment on that group in particular,"  he said.

But the spokesman confirmed the office of the business registrar, which operates out of the ATO, did undertake periodic sweeps to remove unused numbers and registrations "to ensure the integrity of the register".

"This program identifies registrants that have not shown any signs of business activity in the last four years, such as not declaring any business income," he said.

"These registrations are normally cancelled.

"These registrations may be cancelled automatically on the basis of information available to the registrar.

"In 2014-2015 this program of work cancelled 1.2 million redundant registrations.

"To date approximately two  per cent of these have been reinstated on the spot at the request of the ABN holder."

The spokesman defended the office's record of handling applications for ABNs.

"The ATO is meeting the service standard of 93 per cent of ABN registrations processed within 20 business days," he said.

"We registered more than 700,000 ABNs in 2014-2015.

"Currently there are 17,644 ABN applications in the system."

The two players' managers did not respond to requests for comment.

Novak Djokovic Has History in His Sights After Wimbledon Triumph

By claiming his third title in SW19, Novak Djokovic showed he is ready to dominate the sport as Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have done.

Novak Djokovic - the Wimbledon 2015 champion!

© AFP

Victory over Roger Federer in the Wimbledon final brought Novak Djokovic level with his opponent in career meetings at 20 wins apiece. After a triumph that earned the Serb a third title at the All England Club and a ninth major in all, that may seem merely a statistical footnote. But for Djokovic, it gestures towards the wider truth that he is finally beginning to make up ground on Federer, if not in the affections of the public then certainly in the grand sweep of sporting history. (Djokovic Wins Third Wimbledon Title| Love and Marriage Key to Djokovic's Success)

Defeat to the Swiss maestro, which looked an even-money bet when an inspired Federer sent the Centre Court crowd into delirium by staving off six set points to win the second-set tie-break, would have reinforced the impression of Djokovic as a man playing third fiddle in a symphony of unprecedented excellence. But while he remains short of both Federer and Rafael Nadal in terms of majors won - his two biggest rivals have 17 and 14 respectively - he is now in a class of his own on nine. (Steel-Plated Djokovic a Step too Far for Federer)

"He's marching through history right now and we're watching it," said the former world No1 Andy Roddick after a win that lifted Djokovic one slam clear of Andre Agassi, Ivan Lendl, Jimmy Connors, Ken Rosewall and Fred Perry. (Third Title Feels as Sweet as First: Djokovic)

How different that picture might have looked had Djokovic foundered, as he had done in six of his previous nine major finals heading into the match. Then the talk would have turned to a man suffering a crisis of confidence after his recent defeat to Stan Wawrinka in the final of the French Open, the only grand slam Djokovic has yet to win. The Serb would have faced accusations not only of a failure of nerve on the game's biggest stages but also of complacency, following his decision not to play a warm-up event on grass for the second year running. (Federer Magnanimous After Defeat by Djokovic)

Instead, Djokovic confirmed that this is his time. This year has seen him at his most dominant since 2011, when he marked his emergence as a genuine rival to Federer and Nadal by winning in Melbourne, London and New York. Until now, he has struggled to match that high-water mark, failing to win more than one major a year. But victory in SW19 suggests that - like Federer and Nadal, who marked their best years by claiming at least two slams a season - Djokovic is ready to dominate the sport in earnest.

Certainly his comments to the press after his 7-6, 6-7, 6-4, 6-3 victory spoke of a man with history on his mind. "I'm very proud with all the success that I've had so far in my career," said Djokovic. "If you had said to me as a 14-year-old back in Serbia, trying to find my way, that this was how I was going to end up at 28, of course I would have signed the deal and taken it right away.

"There were a couple of grand slam finals that I think I could have won, but having said that everything happens for a reason. I try to learn from every experience, especially the ones that don't end up victorious for me. I'm going to keep going. I'm 28, I feel good, I don't feel old, I have hopefully many more years in front of me. I'm going to try to push my own limits and see how far I can go."

Whether it will be enough to take him beyond his two great rivals remains to be seen. Federer may have thrown down the gauntlet for good with his seventh Wimbledon title three years ago, but Nadal will surely come again after a season spent labouring unsuccessfully to rediscover his best form. For now, though, Djokovic will train his sights on the US Open, where victory would draw him level with Bill Tilden, the great American champion of the 1920s, on 10 majors. Only a fool would bet against him.