"Djokovic has the willingness to be better than anyone, he's superior to Federer and Nadal in that" - Serena Williams' ex-coach Patrick Mouratoglou

Patrick Mouratoglou, Serena Williams' ex-coach, is of the opinion that what separates Novak Djokovic from Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer is his willingness to be "better than anyone" and his desire to "dominate" the game.

Speaking in a recent interview with Tennis Majors, Mouratoglou explained that while all of the Big-3 - Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic - have main qualities, there were some areas where one was better than the others.

For instance, he believed that Federer loved tennis more than the other two, which in turn helped him play the type of graceful tennis he ended up embodying throughout his career. On the other hand, Rafael Nadal was the classic "fighter" who loved to suffer on the court and fight till the last point.

"All three have the main qualities but some are better than others in some areas. All three love tennis, maybe, probably, Roger is the one who loves tennis the most. He’s a player, he loves tennis, he’s breathing tennis, living tennis, all his career and that’s why he was playing that type of tennis," Patrick Mouratoglou said.

"Rafa loves to fight on the court, to suffer, to fight from the first point to the last, this is where he excels and this is where he feels more alive," he added.

The Serb, however, is the one who has been driven all his life by his need to be the very best, according to Mouratoglou. Djokovic recently became the first player, male or female, to win 24 Grand Slams in the Open Era, beating Daniil Medvedev in the final to win the 2023 US Open. He is also currently in the middle of his 391st week as the World No. 1 -- more than anyone else in the history of the game.

"Novak wants to dominate, he wants to be better, and that's where he is better than the two others. He has the willingness to be better than anyone and dominate to be the very best. It has been a driving force for him all his life. I think he’s superior to [Federer and Nadal] in that area," Mouratoglou said.

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"Novak Djokovic is prepared to sacrifice everything to be the best" - Serena Williams' ex-coach Patrick Mouratoglou

US Open Tennis

Patrick Mouratoglou further added that Novak Djokovic is prepared to "do more" than Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, or anyone else for that matter, in order to become the very best. The World No. 1, in the Frenchman's opinion, was ready to sacrifice everything to be the greatest tennis player of all-time, which sets him apart from Federer and Nadal.

"He wants it more, it's more important to him, he’s prepared to do more, he's prepared to have the perfect diet every day in his life. He's prepared to sacrifice everything to be the best. He wants to be the best. He wants to be on top of the world... It's more general for Novak," Patrick Mouratoglou said.