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Move 4:
Djokovic & Federer: Different Paths to the Same Success
Djokovic clearly had nature and genetics behind his success, and although he worked hard to reach his peak level of competition and earned his number 1 ranking, he was born a tennis prodigy.
While Djokovic came into success in his own right, several environmental and nurture factors came into play as well: for example, with the surroundings of an athletic family owning a tennis academy, Djokovic had ample opportunity to capitalize on and become heavily involved in the sport.
Novak Djokovic, at age 28, has won a total of 11 grand slam titles thus far and is currently ranked #1 worldwide.
Unlike Djokovic, Federer didn’t have the advantage of having professional athletes as parents, and didn’t have immediate access to a tennis academy. Instead, he worked hard to become the national junior champion in Switzerland and then earned his place at the Swiss National Tennis Center in Ecublens to train when he was 14 years old.
Federer, like many other players, learned through trial and error the importance of mental composure. In his youth as a professional, Federer was not the cool-headed, graceful player he is today, and instead learned the hard way the importance of mental strategy and composure.
Roger Federer, age 34, has earned a total of 17 grand slam titles and is currently ranked #2 worldwide.
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