The 2015 season is widely regarded as one of Novak Djokovic’s greatest years as a professional. That year, Djokovic clinched three Grand Slam titles—Wimbledon, the US Open, and the Australian Open—and reached the final of Roland Garros. During this remarkable season, Djokovic was under the guidance of Boris Becker, who recently revealed a behind-the-scenes story about the Wimbledon final against Roger Federer.
Becker joined Djokovic’s coaching team in late 2013, helping him secure a string of career-defining victories. While they had already won Wimbledon in 2014, the following year proved even more dominant, with three Major titles. However, Becker’s unconventional involvement during the rain delay in the 2015 Wimbledon final stood out as a defining moment.
“So, [Novak] Djokovic, final against Roger Federer at Wimbledon. He hadn’t won there for a long time,” Becker recounted on the “Becker Petkovic Podcast.” “I had my idea of how he should play against Roger. He won the first set, but he lost the second. He had several set points in the tiebreak. Then there was a rain break, and he went into the locker room right next to the media”.
The German tennis icon admitted he bent the rules slightly to support Djokovic. “You couldn’t get in there as a coach, but I’m a member and I know my way around the media, so I scurried around the judges,” he continued. “I told Novak, in plain English, ‘You’re doing everything right. Pull yourself together, the strategy is right. You’re much younger than Roger’.
Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer during the 2015 Wimbledon. (Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
“I really yelled at him, and he just watched. I don’t think he thought I could speak English so clearly, but if I want to, I can. He went out and won the match,” Becker added. “There are times when the coach just has to tell the player: stick to your strategy, hang in there, you’re the better player”.
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Novak Djokovic issues clear warning to tennis world ahead of Roland Garros: ‘I want more trophies’
Becker’s time with Djokovic
The German coach’s partnership with Djokovic began in 2014, leading to six Grand Slam victories and sustained dominance in the ATP rankings. Their collaboration ended in 2016, but Djokovic credited Becker for being instrumental in achieving his career goals.
“The goals we set when we started working together were completely achieved, and I want to thank him for his cooperation, teamwork, dedication, and commitment,” Djokovic said in December 2016, despite some tension during their final months working together.
Petkovic on Becker’s boldness
Podcast co-host Andrea Petkovic humorously praised Becker’s audacity for confronting Djokovic during such a high-stakes moment. “If you work with stars, you have to have the balls,” Petkovic said. “Novak Djokovic, one of the best players of all time at the time—now officially the best according to numbers—but back then, already one of the best. To go and rip into him, not everyone would do that”.
