"I would love to have experienced playing Jimmy Connors" - Novak Djokovic wishes he were part of the Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi & Goran Ivanisevic era

As much as Novak Djokovic relishes being part of his own era, which saw him join Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal to form the renowned 'Big-3,' the Serb would have enjoyed playing alongside the likes of Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi just as much.

Speaking to the Serbian press at Wimbledon, where he has reached the semifinals, the World No. 2 shed light on which era he would have loved to be a part of.

The 23-time Grand Slam champion started by joking that he would probably get into an argument with John McEnroe, adding words of praise for the American as well as his contemporaries Boris Becker and Ivan Lendl.

“I would probably get into an argument with (John) McEnroe. Yes, we’ve all thought about it. We all compare ourselves to the champions of the past. Many of these champions are still very active in our sport – McEnroe, Boris Becker, Ivan Lendl et cetera. I know Boris really well, and we often spoke about these topics and how he sees today’s tennis compared to his era,” Djokovic said.

The former World No. 1 then added that he regrets never playing alongside Pete Sampras, as it was the 14-time Grand Slam champion who inspired him to pick up a racquet. Djokovic proclaimed that he would have loved to have been a part of his era, alongside other legends like Jimmy Connors and Andre Agassi.

Interestingly, the World No. 2's coach Goran Ivanisevic was part of the same era, giving the Serb all the more reason to wish he had gotten the opportunity to play tennis in that period.

“I am very sorry I didn’t have a chance to play Pete, since he inspired me to pick up a racquet. With (Andre) Agassi, I did play one exhibition match here before Wimbledon. I would have loved to be part of that era, together with crazy Goran,” Novak Djokovic said.

“The Borg-McEnroe rivalry. … Then, I would love to have experienced playing Jimmy Connors at a night session in New York – the way he played and the buzz around the stadium, it was awesome. Still, I am grateful to be part of this era with three of my biggest rivals, who pushed me towards all the success I managed to achieve,” he added.

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“The racquet is our most important tool, and it’s developed so much" - Novak Djokovic

Day Nine: The Championships - Wimbledon 2023

Novak Djokovic also spoke about how much tennis has changed over the years, pointing out how many developments the racquet has undergone to give players more power and precision.

“The racquet is our most important tool, and it’s developed so much. Back in the day, there used to be wooden racquets, but the materials they’re made of nowadays allow players more power and allow them to absorb the vibration of the shot."

"In the past, you had to play serve and volley and you had to slice a lot, especially on surfaces like grass. I think that Borg was the first player to try to build points from the baseline, but he was at the net a lot, too," Novak Djokovic said.

Coming to the present day, the World No. 2 will take on Jannik Sinner in the semifinals at Wimbledon on Friday, where a win will pit him against either Carlos Alcaraz or Daniil Medvedev for the title.