"To be playing so well at Novak Djokovic's age is hard to believe" - John McEnroe

Former tennis player John McEnroe has heaped praise on Novak Djokovic for his longevity on tour. He expressed amazement over how well the Serb is playing at 36 years of age.

Djokovic has won 22 Grand Slams in his illustrious career, and seems more driven than ever to add another title at the ongoing French Open. He has cruised into the quarterfinals at Roland Garros with four consecutive straight sets wins.

In a recent interview with Eurosport, McEnroe credited the Serb for his relentless efforts in trying to reach the heights of Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. The American further suggested that Djokovic's longevity on the tour is unbelievable.

"Certainly he's right there [alongside Nadal and Federer], and I think it's amazing because he was trying to get into that mix for so long. To be playing so well at his age is hard to believe, actually," he said.

McEnroe also hailed the Serb for not shying away from expressing his goal of winning the 2023 French Open.

"I don't have the records in front of me, but he has talked about it so openly, that it's a goal of his and he embraces that," McEnroe said. "I think that takes a lot of guts in itself to say 'I want it' rather than just say 'I want to do the best I can and whatever happens happens'."

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"Djokovic rises to the occasion" - John McEnroe

2023 French Open

John McEnroe further opined that Novak Djokovic thrives on taunts and disapprovals and uses them as inspiration to rise to the occasion.

"Djokovic rises to the occasion. He needs to get inspired or have someone write him off. Some type of chance to break an amazing record," McEnroe said.

He also praised the World No. 3 for his on-court attitude, which has garnered him both love and respect.

"Sometimes his attitude on the court fuels him," McEnroe said. "You'd rather be respected than loved. You'd rather have both if possible, but he's handled it well. He has been mature about it and he's been pretty successful turning lemons into lemonade. To me, he's better than anyone at that to ever play the game."

Following his fourth-round win over Juan Pablo Varillas, Djokovic will next square off against Karen Khachanov in the quarterfinals on Tuesday (June 6). This will be their 10th meeting on the tour. The Serb leads 8-1 in the head-to-head record.