Novak Djokovic's ex-coach Goran Ivanisevic makes his feelings clear on Serb's Australian Open chances despite Jannik Sinner being the 'favorite'

Novak Djokovic's former coach Goran Ivanisevic recently shared his thoughts on the Serb's chances of winning the 2025 Australian Open despite Jannik Sinner being the "favorite." Djokovic has won the Melbourne Major 10 times in his career, with his last title coming in 2023, when he defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final. Meanwhile, Sinner secured his first Australian Open title in 2024 by defeating Daniil Medvedev

This year, Novak Djokovic is seeded seventh at the Grand Slam. He has defeated Nishesh Basavareddy, Jaime Faria, Tomas Machac, Jiri Lehecka, and Carlos Alcaraz to reach the semifinals, where he will face second-seed Alexander Zverev.

On the other hand, Jannik Sinner is the defending champion and the tournament's top seed. He defeated Nicolas Jarry, Tristan Schoolkate, Marcos Giron, Holger Rune, and Alex de Minaur to secure his spot in the final four, where he will face 21st-seed Ben Shelton.

While acknowledging Jannik Sinner as the "favorite" to win the 2025 Australian Open title, Goran Ivanisevic claimed that Novak Djokovic should not be underestimated as one cannot rule him out.

“Yes, he can win. I mean [Jannik] Sinner is the favorite. He's the best player in the world at the moment but Novak is Novak. And when he’s present on the court then I always put my money on Novak,” Goran Ivanisevic said on 'The Tennis' podcast.

Ivanisevic praised Djokovic's work ethic, calling him a "genius" and a "perfectionist."

“He’s a genius. He’s a perfectionist who wants everything to be 100% every day . What was good today is not good tomorrow. And you need to be ready, you need to always be 24 hours alert. But it’s okay and I learned that,” Ivanisevic continued.

Invanisevic added that the 24-time Grand Slam champion's approach to practice, matches, and body maintenance kept him fit and less injury-prone than other top players like Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Andy Murray.

“With him it’s how he approached the matches, how he approached the practise, how it takes care of his body. ‘Cause if you see his career, he’s probably, among Rafa [Nadal], him, Roger [Federer] and Andy [Murray], he was always most fit and with least injury. That’s why he was caring of his body, with his eating, with his exercise, so he's still here,” he continued

Goran Ivanisevic guided the former World No.1 to 12 Grand Slam titles during their six-year partnership before they parted ways in early 2024. After that, Djokovic enlisted Andy Murray as his coach ahead of the 2025 season.

---

Novak Djokovic boasts a dominant head-to-head record against Alexander Zverev

Novak Djokovic & Jannik Sinner at the 2023 Davis Cup Finals [Source: Getty]

Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner have secured their spots in the semifinals of the 2025 Australian Open. The Serb will face Alexander Zverev in the final four, while Sinner will go up against Ben Shelton.

On his run to the semifinals, Zverev defeated players like Lucas Pouille, Pedro Martinez, Jacob Fearnley, Ugo Humbert, and Tommy Paul. The former World No.1 and Zverev have faced each other 12 times on the ATP Tour, with Djokovic winning eight out of those matches.

Their last meeting was in the semifinals of the 2023 Cincinnati Masters, where the Serb claimed a 7-6(5), 7-5 win over the German before defeating Carlos Alcaraz in the final to win the title.

On the other hand, Shelton earned his spot in the semifinals by defeating Brandon Nakashima, Pablo Carreno Busta, Lorenzo Musetti, Gael Monfils, and Lorenzo Sonego.

Jannik Sinner and Ben Shelton have met five times on the ATP Tour, with the World No.1 winning four matches. Their most recent encounter was in the fourth round of the 2024 Shanghai Masters, where Sinner won 6-4, 7-6(1) before beating Djokovic in the final to claim the title.