Novak Djokovic: I Know What To Expected With Milos Raonic, I Need To Be At My Best

Following a tough 3-set win over Gilles Muller Monday night in Melbourne, 4-time champion Novak Djokovic talked about his upcoming Australian Open quarterfinal match against Milos Raonic, who he has beaten four times, three times last year in the Paris Indoors, French Open and Rome.

“I know what to expect,” Djokovic said. “We practice a lot. We live in the same place. We’re good friends. He’s very confident. He’s been playing some great tennis in last 15 months. He deserves to be where he is now, top 10, coming closer to top 5 of the world. Tough one. Definitely a tough one. I need to be at my best, top of my game, in order to win that match.

“He’s very disciplined player, always works out. Always spends a lot of time in the gym, off the court, preparing himself, his body, for tough battles. Does spend a lot of time for the recovery, as well, preparation, prevention. He’s got a very good team of people around him. I know the people who are around him. I’ve worked with them as well. It’s a good team. Sooner or later if you have quality, you have a good team of experts around you, you have that discipline and commitment to what you need to do on a daily basis, the results are inevitable.”

Thus far through four matches Djokovic is playing maybe the best of anyone. And he’s happy with his play.

“I haven’t dropped a set, I’m in the quarterfinals,” he said. “Yes, I had tough matches the last two rounds, but I had quality opponents. I think I dropped serve only once during the whole tournament. That is a very encouraging fact. I have to motivate myself and obviously use the off days to work on a few things. There are a few things I think I can do better. Overall it’s a positive feeling going into the quarters.”