Novak Djokovic has fine-tuned every aspect of his game to ensure he has given himself every chance to succeed and the man behind the shoes he wears on court has given Tennis365 an exclusive insight into the professionalism of the 24-time Grand Slam champion.
Djokovic joined up with ASICS in 2018 and he has gone on to develop a series of tennis shoes with the global giant that have proved to be hugely popular with other players and especially club players around the world.
The level of involvement Djokovic has in developing these shoes may surprise you and Tennis365 sat down with Rene Zandbergen, Senior Manager CPS Footwear and Innovation at ASICS Europe, who gave us a fascinating insight into the strong bond he has developed with the Serbian legend and they worked together to ensure he is wearing the perfect shoe when he takes to the court.
How often does Novak Djokovic change his shoes?
Pretty much every match. What we see with Novak is he will use shoes for one practice before, so he will move into the match with the shoe. Then we get the shoes back and look at where they have been worn and how we can improve that. When he has only worn them for one match, it is not always easy to get too much information as they are not too worn if he has only worn them once.
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How would you describe Djokovic’s approach to his work?
He is so focused and any time we need to do anything with him from a commercial or marketing perspective, it’s always so quick because he is professional with everything he does. He is very good with words and everything he says is on the spot. He is always very impressive to be around.
Are you dreading the day Djokovic announces his retirement from tennis?
For sure. It will be the end of an era and it is not just Novak that will be leaving. It is the three of them – Novak, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. That as the era in tennis and there were hardly anyone else who won for 15 years in tennis. Even now, I would be scared to be playing Novak because we know the level he can still reach when he is at his best.
Rene Zandbergen from ASICS speaks to Tennis365
Is Novak a fun guy to be around?
When we do photoshoots with him, he can be very funny. Sometimes it can be a little more business-like because the schedules of tennis players are so tight, but he is always up for a joke when are with him.
Tell us about your relationship with the players you work with in your role at ASICS?
What I always find really interesting is the passion and the desire they all have to get the best shoe when they go onto the court. I have a passion for footwear and blending these two together is always interesting. I really need to understand from them what they want, what they need, what they want to change. Then my job is to find the solutions.
Do you sometimes need to tell a player that you cannot give them everything they need?
Of course. Sometimes we have to say that a shoe cannot be as flexible as they sometimes want it to be, as that will make it unstable. It is all about finding a balance and trying to give a player everything they want and accepting that it may not always be possible to meet every request. When you sit down with a player, they only want the best and the fun for us is trying to work with them and get them the perfect footwear.
Are there changes in the way tennis is played now that have given you fresh challenges?
When players slide on hard courts, they can burn through their laces. The dragging foot slides over the laces and we have a shoe coming out in January that will have covered laces. So there is no chance we can burn through the lace any more.
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