Novak Djokovic will once again meet his fans at the China Open as he comes to Beijing for the tournament. (Photo : REUTERS)
Tennis champion Andy Murray was distracted by the medical breaks in the Australian Open finals game in February, but for his opponent, Serbian Novak Djokovic, the medical timeouts helped the No. 1 player win the match and get his fifth Australian Open title. The match lasted three hours and 39 minutes.
Djokovic, who won his Friday match against Australian Bernard Tomic 6-3, 6-3, 6-3, has yet to drop a set in Wimbledon 2015. He is slated to meet South African Kevin Anderson, BBC reports.
It was a similar situation for Murray in his Saturday match at the All England Club versus Andreas Seppi who requested for a medical timeout when they were 2-1 during the third set. Seppi, who complained of shin injury, won that set because Murray lost his concentration during the breaks, reports ESPN.
Murray blames the delay in the game to his body stiffening, which required for it to warm up and led to Murray requesting his own timeout. The Scot eventually won the game 6-2, 6-2, 1-6 and 6-1.
In a post-match press conference, Murray disclosed he had his shoulder manipulated the past few days after every practice session. He said that he only feels the shoulder pain when serving. "It's not something of major concern to me, but when you take a break it stiffens up. My serve was pretty bad after that happened," explains Murray.
Playing through pain is not something new to Murray who suffered from back pain for about two years until the pain was addressed by a surgery in September 2013.
He adds that medical breaks results in the athlete's heart rate slowing down. It breaks rhythms and the match's momentum, similar to what happens when players are gone for 10 to 15 minutes at the end of a set for a toilet break.
On the other hand, Djokovic who is known for mental toughness, credits his victories to meditation which he does at the Buddhapadipa Temple when in Wimbledon. The temple, where the Serb is its most famous visitor, is just five minutes by foot from the All England Club, reports The Independent.
Phramaha Bhatsakorn Piyobhaso, a monk at the temple, said that the tennis champion usually comes early in the morning to meditate. He usually does not speak to the orange-clad monks, but sometimes asks the temple staff to open the main temple for him.
"He walks around the temple and spends one or two hours alone. He just comes to the temple to enjoy nature, the peace and the beautiful environment," Phramaha shares.
Murray has hired a psychiatrist to help him enjoy playing tennis genuinely, Serena Williams refuses to wash her socks when she is on a winning streak, while Rafael Nadal takes a cold shower prior to matches.
