The fact that Novak didn’t use any of the six break opportunities against the world number 11 at Wiener Stadthalle upset Lower Austria: “I should have dared more, I risked more. I have nothing to lose in cricket ball.”

After the match, which he lost 4:6 2:6 in two sets, the lower Austrian said: “The idea was not to let him play, to attack the second serve. I succeeded in the beginning, as well as in the rest of the match, but the difference was the evaluation of opportunities.” Sinner used almost all of his chances.

However, he has made progress in the past five and a half months, said the lower Austrian, who has been in charge of Gunther Bresnik again since mid-April, and will of course remain committed to that. “My goal is to be in the top 50 and to keep moving forward, I have to work hard,” said the 28-year-old, who is currently 116.

Novak hopes for more matches with top players

On the tour, Novak lost his fifth game against the top 15 players. “More matches at the same level against these players brings more experience. I have already had enough matches, but the goal is to improve week by week, to train with (strong, note) people and also to play matches against them.” In Vienna he also got the chance to train with world-class players.

And he will have the opportunity to play another big Davis Cup match in Innsbruck at the end of November, when he meets Dominic Thiem as the number one Austrian against the number one in the world, Serbian Djokovic, in his absence. “Nobody likes playing against Djokovic, but I’m really looking forward to it. It’s a chance for me to show what I can. I hope I can pester him in the best possible way. Anything is possible in the Davis Cup. But I don’t expect to be shot in two sentences. I have nothing to lose.” , I can play freely. Then we’ll see anyway.”

Novak is vaccinated and ready for the Australian Open

Novak answered a similar question that he will definitely travel to a Grand Slam tournament in Australia, and he has been vaccinated. The next few weeks will show if he should qualify there. In any case, vaccination will be absolutely necessary for the players in order to compete in Australia.

Because the state of Victoria has confirmed that it will not grant unvaccinated players any special passes to participate in Melbourne. Novak said: “I have nothing to say about the controversy over Tim, who has not yet been vaccinated against Covid-19, and which at the same time has been elevated to a political level. Dominic will know what he is doing.”

ATP 500 Championship in Vienna

(Austria, €1.974 million, hard court/hall)