On the eve of the Australian Open, Novak Djokovic revived what he called his "little tradition" — a moment where he stops talking about tennis, rises from the chair at his pre-tournament news conference and distributes chocolates to the media. A crowd-pleaser on court and off, Djokovic glided through the aisles of the auditorium Sunday chatting about how many languages he spoke ("a lot") and delighting a Chinese journalist by saying "Ni hao," or hello, as he graciously offered sweets with a smile.
"I have a strict diet. This is only for you. You can have two if you like," he quipped during his pre-tournament performance, a repeat of his press conference before the 2014 Australian Open. "This is not bribery, just good spirits. A little delight. Why not!" Djokovic is vying for his fifth Australian Open title, an accomplishment that would raise his overall number of Grand Slam trophies to eight.
The 27-year-old who became a new father in October arrived in Australia feeling ill and canceled a practice session Saturday, raising concerns about his fitness for the season's first Grand Slam. But Sunday he was back on the court for a training session, hitting hard and moving well around the court, and said he was feeling better.
"I had a tough couple of days. But it's all behind me now. I'm ready for the Open," he said, adding he'd picked up a virus in the Middle East where he played matches recently in Abu Dhabi and Doha, Qatar. "(It was) a little bit of flu and stomach," he said. "But now it's good, it's passed." But after a "good off-season," his focus is now on work. Djokovic is scheduled to play his first-round match Tuesday against Slovenian qualifier Aljaz Bedene.
As the tennis season gets underway, the big topic of conversation is whether the "Old Guard" of champions will continue to dominate - No. 2 Roger Federer, No. 3 Rafael Nadal and Djokovic - who have shared most of the Grand Slam trophies of the past decade. Or if the new generation of occasional winners will make more headway. Stan Wawrinka, who for years was known as "the other Swiss star," won theAustralian Open last year but doesn't want to dwell on that.They're incredible memories," Wawrinka said Sunday, during a news conference conducted in English and French. "But it's 2015, we're all starting from zero.” The Swiss star has 17 Grand Slam titles and is a strong contender for his 18th in Melbourne.
del Potro pulls out
Juan Martin del Potro's injury time-off from Grand Slam tournaments just got a little longer. The 2009 US Open winner withdrew Sunday from the Australian Open on the eve of the tournament to avoid re-injuring a surgically-repaired wrist that he said had been hurting him for the "last couple days and weeks."
The 26-year-old Argentine was one of the most significant absentees from the men's game for much of last season, which he spent recovering from major left wrist surgery after bouncing back from right wrist surgery in 2010. Del Potro made it the quarterfinals of the Sydney International last week, his first tournament after 11 months off the tour.
“I really enjoyed playing tennis again last week in Sydney, winning a couple matches. I didn't expect that for sure,” said del Potro, who had a career-high ranking of No. 4 in 2010 but has slipped to 276th. Del Potro said he would consult with doctor and hoped to return to tournaments .