‘Nole’ was hugely successful during his time working alongside the Croat and collected nine major titles during their five or so years together. However, Ivanisevic has now confessed he saw the writing on the wall prior to Djokovic officially announcing their separation.

“I knew that time was coming. Novak was already fed up with me, and vice versa,” Ivanisevic told Swiss media, via Serb outlet Alo. “Relationships just come to an end, even though we parted ways as friends. There were no fights and we will always remain friends.

“Novak achieved all these successes, and I helped him a little. It was a great honor and responsibility to train such a genius. It wasn’t always easy. There were problems with the pandemic, the disqualification at the US Open and the incident in Melbourne. It was really complicated.”

If things were complicated off the court, it certainly didn’t show in Djokovic’s performances in recent years. Despite becoming one of the more senior stars on the ATP Tour, the Serb has managed to hold down his place as a consistent threat at the Grand Slam level.

The 36-year-old won three of the four majors on offer in 2023 and was only denied a historic calendar Grand Slam by Carlos Alcaraz at Wimbledon. Were it not for the Spaniard’s sudden emergence as a new tennis superpower, Djokovic would have undoubtedly added that rarest of achievements to his repertoire.

Ivanisevic parted company with the world No 1 after he made an underwhelming start to 2024. Despite maintaining his place atop the ATP rankings, Djokovic was disappointed with his semi-final exit at the Australian Open, his worst finish in Melbourne since 2018.

That’s been followed by a string of below-par performances at the Monte-Carlo Masters, Indian Wells and the Italian Open. But despite all that, Ivanisevic is still backing his former charge for a return to the top at the upcoming French Open.

“Grand Slams are different,” he continued. “If he is mentally ready, he will win the Garos. I think he will be motivated. Novak never gives up. Grand slams are the most important for him and he always finds a way to win.”

Djokovic is the reigning champion in Paris and returns to Roland Garros this week seeking his third French Open crown in three editions. However, he’ll have stiff competition for the gong as Jannik Sinner, Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev each plot their own paths to the gold.