One Czech has already advanced to the Masters semi-finals in Shanghai. But the other is also living his dream. Jakub Menšík (19) will face Novak Djokovic (37) on Friday afternoon and will try to build on the success of compatriot Tomáš Macháč (23). He meets a tennis player who has always been his role model. And even the Serbian champion admits that the Czech youngster is one of those he would bet on in the future.
Teenager Menšík very quickly becomes a respected tennis personality. He only recently arrived on the ATP circuit, but he already has four wins in a row against players from the TOP 10. Should Djokovic be afraid of him?
“Jakub is very tall, but he moves very well. He has a good serve, he plays consistently from the baseline and I think he will have nothing to lose against me. I expect a tough match because he can apply a lot of pressure. He has hard shots and this court in Shanghai helps his style of play,” said the 24-time Grand Slam winner when asked about his quarter-final match with the Czech, who knocked out seasoned Grigor Dimitrov.
“I actually enjoy watching his matches because he can do everything on the pitch. He’s aggressive but also defends well. He’s also made a lot of physical progress in recent years.” added the Serb. Djokovic knows who he’s talking about. It’s not like he learned anything about Menšík from the internet or from clips of matches.
On the contrary, some time ago he decided to try to help the talented Czech tennis player. “He is a very promising boy. I also completed several weeks of training with him in Belgrade. I try to be available to give advice to young people like him. His parents are nice too. I always thought he had the potential to be one of the best in the world.” admitted Djokovic very close contact with his closest rival.
Menšík already knows that he will once again improve his position in the world rankings. Even if he loses to Djokovic, he will be very close to the TOP 50. But even at the moment when he faces the match of his life, he admits a bit of sentiment: “It’s a dream come true. I always wanted to play a real match against Novak. When I was little and I started playing tennis, he was already at the top. I was like, ‘Wow, he’s so good and how many Grand Slams has he won!’. I’m 19 now and he’s still playing… So I will admit that I am happy for this opportunity and I am happy that it came true. And we’ll see how I’m doing on Friday…”
The article was originally published for Livesport Zprávy.
