"Novak Djokovic is struggling more & more" - Serena Williams' ex-coach Rennae Stubbs on Serb's future ahead of Indian Wells Masters

Serena Williams' ex-coach Rennae Stubbs recently weighed in on the struggles that Novak Djokovic is going through. While Stubbs applauded Djokovic's ability to quickly recover from injuries, she expressed concerns over his recent struggles with injuries.

Djokovic abruptly withdrew from the Australian Open semifinal after losing the first set to Alexander Zverev. This was because of a hamstring injury he suffered in his previous match against Carlos Alcaraz. As he left the court, the crowd booed him, and he responded with a sarcastic thumbs-up. Later, he posted an MRI scan of his injury on social media as proof of the setback. This marked his fifth straight Grand Slam without a title.

Djokovic recently faced an unexpected setback against Italy's Matteo Berrettini at the Qatar Open. Analyzing the Serbian's concerning situation, Serena Williams' ex-coach talked about how the recurring injuries in his leg could impede his progress moving forward.

"Novak Djokovic did lose to Berrettini. Berrettini did play the match of his life. He was hitting forehands all over the place for winners. I know he's had his issues at the start of this year with in Australia with the leg. He's struggling with injuries over the last couple of years now with the knee, with the leg," she said, in a recent episode of the Rennae Stubbs tennis podcast.

The ex-pro admitted to the fact that Djokovic has defied age. However, she highlighted how not winning matches could be a worrying sign for the Serb.

"Novak has bounced back better than most, better than probably anyone. But this is starting to be a little bit of an issue now, not winning matches. And then when you haven't played for a while, then you come back and you're older. When you go and play a match, you're pushing yourself more, you're doing a little more, you're more nervous, your body's more uptight. And he's struggling more and more and more,” she added.

Djokovic cited a muscle tear as the reason behind his exit from the Australian Open. Although he tried testing his levels in Doha, he wasn't good enough to overcome Berrettini and suffered an opening-round exit.

Novak Djokovic drops positive update on his leg injury

Novak Djokovic at the ATP Qatar ExxonMobil Open Round Of 32 - Source: Getty

Novak Djokovic recently gave fans new hopes for his comeback with a positive update on his injury. The ATP star dropped details about the leg injury he suffered during a showdown against Zverev in Melbourne. He also shared the opinion of his medical team to confirm his status for the upcoming events.

"There's no longer any muscle tear. The injury is almost 100 percent healed and I'm ready to go for more victories. I have the green light from the medical team to train, to prepare," he said, in an interview with the Montenegrin newspaper Vijesti.

The ATP star also made his goal clear of joining the elite club of legends like Jimmy Connors and Roger Federer by clinching an ATP title win that would mark his 100th.

"I've been chasing it for a while, since last October. But we'll see, it'll come when it comes. Thank god I managed to recover quickly. I've had a few more injuries recently compared to the first 15 years of my career," he admitted.

After facing an unexpected defeat in Doha, the Serbian star is now planning to enter the courts of Indian Wells.