"I would give the young myself a hard time" - Novak Djokovic on whether his ATP Finals 2023 version would beat his younger self

Novak Djokovic was asked by journalists after his title win at the 2023 ATP Finals whether he would beat his younger self, to which he gave an interesting response.

Djokovic defeated home favorite Jannik Sinner 6-3, 6-3 in one hour and 43 minutes at the Pala Alpitour court on Sunday to win a record seventh ATP Finals title. The triumph propelled the Serb past Roger Federer, breaking their tie for the most titles won at the ATP Finals.

Djokovic now has 71 'Big Titles' to his name, which include Grand Slam titles, ATP Finals titles, ATP Masters 1000 titles, and Olympic singles gold medals. Djokovic's dominance in most of these categories is unrivaled; he holds the record for the most titles won at Grand Slams (24), ATP Finals (7), and ATP Masters 1000s (40).

During the post-match press conference, Novak Djokovic spoke about encountering inquiries regarding the outcome of a hypothetical showdown between his younger self and his present self. In response, he surmised that he would give his younger counterpart a run for his money.

"But someone did ask me the same question not a while ago. The question was actually phrased like, Who would win in the matchup? I said it would be an easy job for a 36-year-old, yeah (laughter). Joking, of course. I don't know what would be the score. I would give the young myself a hard time, that's for sure," he said.

Novak Djokovic: "I have always the highest ambitions and goals"

ATP Finals 2023

During the same press conference, Novak Djokovic was also asked how he could better his performance from this season, where he has won three Grand Slams and the ATP Finals title.

In response, the Serb said he has the "highest ambitions and goals." He also joked that he would aim to win all four Slams and an Olympic gold medal in 2024.

"Well, you can win four slams and Olympic gold (smiling). Let's see. I mean, I have always the highest ambitions and goals. That's not going to be different for the next year, that's for sure. The drive that I have is still there. My body has been serving me well, listening to me well. I have a great team of people around me," he said.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion expressed his determination to maintain the same level of mental freshness to achieve even greater success next season.

"The mindset is the same. I'll keep going. I don't know whether I'm going to have as good of a year next year, but I'm going to keep this kind of, yeah, freshness of mind and in a way motivation to do that," he added.