"We had some blocks together at my club": Novak Djokovic recalls training with Mensik long before Miami Open final

Novak Djokovic recalled inviting Jakub Mensik to train in Serbia when the Czech was just 16 years old. The 24-time Grand Slam champion was impressed with Mensik’s level at the 2022 Australian Open juniors, where he reached the final before cramping and losing to Bruno Kuzuhara.

Just three years later, Mensik secured the biggest win of his career, defeating his idol Djokovic in the Miami Open final. The Czech had already trained with Djokovic even before playing ATP-level tournaments. “Never really happy to lose, but he’s one of the very few players that I would be happier to lose to, to be honest,” Djokovic said in his press conference.

“I saw him play when he was 15 or 16 and invited him for training. We had some blocks together at my club in Belgrade. Even back then, I could already tell he was going to be one of the top players in the world.”

Mensik clinched his first professional title in no less than a Masters 1000 event, securing a career-high ranking of world No. 24 starting Monday. His only previous ATP final came at the 2024 Qatar Open, where he fell to second seed Karen Khachanov.

Djokovic wasn’t surprised by Mensik’s rapid rise, noting that the Czech still has room for improvement despite his already well-rounded game. “I’m super glad he’s using his potential because he has the complete game. His serve is incredible—powerful, precise, and he wins a lot of free points. His backhand is great too—Czech players always have a great backhand (smiling). But his forehand has improved a lot. And for a tall guy, his movement is impressive.”

Djokovic, who watched Mensik’s junior final closely, was happy to invite him to Serbia to train in 2022. “I loved his fighting spirit in that final in Australia. Big game, seemed like a nice guy, Eastern European. I called through management, and we found a connection. He accepted to come, and we had three training blocks together. Actually, his physio now was my physio before—there are a lot of connections," Djokovic added. "As I said, big game, big potential. I’m sure he has a bright future ahead.”