Rising Canadian star Gabriel Diallo reveals that watching the epic 2012 Australian Open final between Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal was the moment that gave him a strong desire to pursue a professional tennis career. In the 2012 Australian Open final, Djokovic beat Nadal in five sets after five hours and 53 minutes – the longest Grand Slam final in tennis history.
After Djokovic bested Nadal in an absolute thriller, Diallo bought the Serb’s kit and began copying the now 22-time Grand Slam champion. “I remember watching Novak against Rafa at the 2012 Australian Open over and over again.
I don’t know if I saw it live, but I kept watching the recaps. I was like, ‘That sounds like a lot of fun.’ They were facing each other, a huge crowd. , night session, almost six hours. I bought Novak’s clothes and I was playing with his racket, trying to play like him,” Diallo explained to the ATP website.
After winning an ITF title in June, Diallo also claimed a Challenger title in August, defeating Juncheng Shang in the Granby final. Last week, Diallo made his ATP debut in Dallas after entering the tournament as a lucky loser.
Unfortunately for Diallo, he fell short of his first ATP main draw win after losing to Emilio Gomez in a tight three-setter in his Dallas debut. But for Diallo, the highlight of his career remains winning a Challenger title in front of his crowd in Granby.
“It was a wildcard in Granby and I took it game by game. It was a lot of fun playing there because it’s an hour from where I live. My friends were there, the audience really hugged me. He played free and motivated. It has been the best experience of my professional career so far,” Diallo said.
Vajda speaks about Djokovic
Marian Vajda recently opened up about his current relationship with World No. 1 Novak Djokovic. “The relationship continues well, but it was cut off due to a professional issue. We spent 15 years together.
He decided to play fewer tournaments and be with a smaller team, and Goran is number one on the team,” Vajda told Olé. “It was a very difficult separation on an emotional level for both, but life goes on and Novak continues to be Novak,” Vajda continued.
“He’s stabilizing, he knows how to train, how to get along with Goran. I’m fine, he’s fine. And that’s how it has to be,” the Slovak said.
