Novak Djokovic moves on from coach Goran Ivanisevic: Can move help him ace the Alcaraz and Sinner tests?

The partnership was hugely successful. Since joining up with Marian Vajda in 2018 – before taking sole responsibility of the Serb’s coaching staff in 2022 – Ivanisevic has overseen 12 Grand Slam championships, half of Djokovic’s record all-time haul of 24, and four consecutive Wimbledon titles and five consecutive finals in the last five editions of the tournament.

The reasons for joining up with the 2001 Wimbledon champion had been just as clear in 2018 as they were in Djokovic’s announcement on Wednesday — to improve his serve.

“I remember clearly the moment I invited Goran to be part of my team. It was back in 2018, and Marian and I were looking to innovate and bring some serve magic to our duo,” Djokovic wrote in an Instagram post announcing the split. “Goran and I decided to stop working together a few days ago. Our on court chemistry had its ups and downs, but our friendship was always rock solid.. thanks for everything my friend. Love you.”

After elbow surgery in 2017 and a lull in his career, the need to alter his service motion had become evident. Ivanisevic oversaw steady, incremental improvements after imploring the Serb to have a jerk-free, fluent motion, letting his racquet go through the ball with a lower toss, as opposed to waiting for the ball to fall.

Numbers showed an improvement in both speed and accuracy. According to TennisViz data compiled by The Athletic, Djokovic’s first serve averaged 120.1 miles per hour in 2023, a huge jump from 115.4 in 2015. In that time, the tour average rose slightly from 116.1mph to 116.7. His serves, on average, landed five centimetres closer to the lines in 2023 than in 2015, and eight centimetres closer to them than the tour average during that period.

These gains may seem minute on first viewing, but watch Djokovic’s point construction during his peak physicality in the early 2010s and during his stellar 2023 season, and the reliability of his serve — earning him cheap points when his body was no longer suited to constant long baseline exchanges — is evident.

Djokovic has never resisted in chopping and changing the team around him. He surprisingly parted ways twice with childhood mentor Vajda, in 2017 and then in 2022 after rejoining in 2018. A year later, in 2023, he would go on to win three Majors and reach four finals in what was one of the best seasons of his career.

He didn’t hesitate to end things with Boris Becker, who made attacking influences to his all-time great defensive game to make him unbeatable between 2014 and 2016, a period in which he became the first man since Rod Laver to hold all four Majors at the same time. Shortly, with Andre Agassi, a high-profile partnership — hoping to gain a mental edge — and a swift parting of ways — when it was evidently not working out — followed.

Experiments with the likes of Pepe Imaz, a former player turned spiritual guru who specialised in the power of long hugs, have also been attempted.

The reasons may vary but Djokovic has always looked to his team to find an edge. He is now potentially going through another transitional moment. The younger lot have stood firm against him – Carlos Alcaraz beat hi in an epic Wimbledon final and Jannik Sinner thoroughly outplayed him at the Australian Open this year. They are showing no signs of intimidation and taking the game to him.

So, at a time when he is looking to keep his place atop the tennis tour and fending off players closer to his children’s age than his, expect him to be looking for the same with this latest change.