Novak Djokovic receives harsh criticism by former hitting partner: ‘Honestly, it was a nightmare’

Former hitting partner of Novak Djokovic, Jules Marie, has harshly criticized the Serbian tennis star, recounting unpleasant experiences during their training sessions.

© Hannah Peters/Getty ImagesNovak Djokovic of Serbia reacts in the Men’s Singles Semifinal against Alexander Zverev of Germany during day 13 of the 2025 Australian Open.

Novak Djokovic has long been a polarizing figure, celebrated for his record-breaking tennis achievements, like his recent milestone achieved at the Miami Open, but also facing his fair share of criticism. This time, the 24-time Grand Slam champion finds himself in the spotlight after a scathing review from one of his former hitting partners, French player Jules Marie, who recently shared negative memories of their training sessions.

Marie, who currently ranks No. 461 in the ATP standings, appeared on the Matchpoint podcast, where he vividly recalled difficult training sessions with the former World No. 1. “When I was Novak’s sparring partner at Roland Garros, I played five times with Djokovic, and he was nasty all five times,” Marie confessed.

“With Novak, you have to play precisely; if your shot is even slightly off, he doesn’t even try and just gives you a look that says, ‘If you do that again, I’ll destroy you.’ Honestly, it was a nightmare,” he continued. “Once, when I served, Novak refused to return it, saying that’s his coach’s job”.

Marie also recounted a bizarre moment during a practice session. “His coach served, I returned, and Novak inexplicably launched the ball 50 meters into the sky. It was supposed to be serve and return practice. Later, I served again—apparently, slightly off-center—and instead of calmly correcting me, he made an irritated gesture,” he added.

Novak Djokovic of Serbia speaks with coach Boris Becker during a training session on day fourteen of the 2016 French Open at Roland Garros. (Dennis Grombkowski/Getty Images)

While Marie didn’t specify the exact year of these incidents, he mentioned that Boris Becker was Djokovic’s coach at the time, suggesting the events took place between 2014 and 2016, when the German coach worked with the Serbian star.

“The tension was even worse because Boris Becker and John McEnroe were also there. I can’t say Novak was friendly. But since I was the highest-ranked sparring partner available, Becker kept calling me back,” he noted.

Things changed during the 2024 Australian Open

However, Marie’s experience with Djokovic was different when they met again at the 2024 Australian Open. This time, he noted, the atmosphere had shifted. With the added awareness of Marie’s popular YouTube channel and the presence of cameras during their training session, Djokovic’s behavior was noticeably altered.

“Interestingly, when Novak and I met again at practice in Australia, things had changed,” Marie explained. “I was a qualifying player, not just a sparring partner, and he knew about my YouTube channel. Plus, we were filmed, there were cameras, so he couldn’t be nasty“.