Pressure Is a Privilege
People cry not because they’re weak, it’s because they’ve been strong for too long
— Johnny Depp
On Sept. 12. of this year, Novak Djoković was on the verge of achieving a great tennis feat — Grand Slam — winning all four major titles in a calendar year. When Rod Laver did it, back in 1969, the pro tennis circuit just started, and, while a great achievement in itself, nobody imagined that it would become such an elusive Holy Grail of men’s tennis and that nobody would achieve it since.
All he had to do is win one more match, the US Open championship finals. That’s it. If he were to do it, he’d also get his 21st grand slam title — the new record, further extending his chances to be crowned a tennis GOAT — the greatest player of all time.
But, he couldn’t do it: he lost the final US Open match to Daniil Medvedev, convincingly, while not playing nowhere near his ability. During the match, in the 3rd set, probably for the first time in his life, he realized that he’s going to lose and that he can’t do much about it. Then he cried, during the changeover. He tried to hide it under the towel, but we could all see that he’s crying underneath it.
