Patrick Mouratoglou reasons why Novak Djokovic is playing "lower level tournaments", chalks it up to his GOAT race with Rafa

Patrick Mouratoglou recently stated that Novak Djokovic's single-most important goal was to take the lead over Rafael Nadal in the all-time Grand Slam race, which he called "one of the most interesting things" in tennis history. To achieve that goal, Djokovic needs to stay in rhythm by playing as many tournaments as possible and be ready when a Grand Slam tournament comes around, according to Mouratoglou.

Novak Djokovic missed the Australian Open and the US Open this season due to a compulsory coronavirus vaccine mandate in both countries. He also missed the entirety of the American hardcourt swing, including two Masters 1000 events in Montreal and Cincinnati.

In a recent video on his Instagram page, Mouratoglou opened up on the Djokovic-Nadal rivalry and why Djokovic needs to "keep the motivation" for the Grand Slams by playing more tournaments in the build-up. The French coach feels that is why the 21-time Grand Slam champion has been competing in tournaments of late in which he does not usually participate.

"There is one of the most interesting things in the history of our game that is taking place at the moment, which is this race," Mouratoglou said in a video on his Instagram page. "At this stage of his career, Novak has one goal, which is to win as many Grand Slams as possible because he's into a race with Rafa. He doesn't have many chances, he has only 2 per year, because at the moment he doesn't play the Australian Open and the US Open."

"So in order to be really efficient in those big tournaments, you need matches, you need to be in the rhythm, and you need to win matches. He's lacking that for the moment," he added.

Djokovic won the Tel Aviv Open last week and is currently participating at the Astana Open, before shifting his focus to the bigger tournaments - the Paris Masters and the ATP Finals.

"I think it's difficult for him and I also think it's one of the reasons why he's playing these lower-ranked tournaments, because he needs to keep the rhythm and keep the motivation in order to get ready for the Australian Open," Mouratoglou expressed.

The 52-year-old, who currently coaches Simona Halep, further explained that players tend to train with a lot more motivation ahead of a tournament as opposed to pre-season. That is also the case with Novak Djokovic, according to Mouratoglou.

"During the pre-season, for example, where there are many more weeks, sometimes 6 of 8 weeks in a row for practice, it's so difficult for the players. When they don't have a short-term goal, the motivation is more difficult to find," Mouratoglou said.

"He has a tournament, he needs to be ready. It's easier to go to practice than if your next tournament is in 2 months," he added.

Novak Djokovic's dominant run of form continues at Astana Open

Novak Djokovic at the Laver Cup 2022 - Day Three

Novak Djokovic's straight-sets win over Botic van de Zandschulp in the Round of 16 at the Astana Open on Thursday was his sixth consecutive win on tour, which included his title-clinching run at the Tel Aviv Open. A 6-3, 6-1 victory meant that the Serbian great has now won 12 sets in a row after losing to Felix Auger-Aliassime at the Laver Cup.

The 35-year-old competed for the first time since Wimbledon at the Laver Cup. He won his opening singles match in straight sets against Frances Tiafoe and won a doubles match for Team Europe alongside Matteo Berrettini, before losing to Auger-Aliassime. In his first ATP event with points since the French Open, Djokovic won the Tel Aviv Open without dropping a set.

He was hindered by a nagging wrist injury at the Laver Cup, but has shown no signs of discomfort since then.