Dreams do come true! Currently, the young American tennis star, Nishesh Basavareddy is living his dream. He couldn’t have asked for a more exciting start to his campaign at the 2025 AO. Basavareddy is all set to face the 10-time AO champion, Novak Djokovic in the first round. Speaking on the Serb he once said, “My favorite has always been Djokovic. I’ve looked up to a lot of different players and modeled my game after a lot of players, but he’s been my favorite.” Now, after accomplishing his first wish of getting the chance to play against his tennis idol, he has recently revealed his second wish! What’s that, though?

During a recent interview with ATP Tour.com, Nishesh Basavareddy was asked to name three individuals with whom he would’ve liked to have dinner. In reply to that question, the youngster was seen naming Roger Federer alongside Novak Djokovic. He said, “Novak [Djokovic], LeBron [James]… I’m trying to think of a businessman or something like that… But I’ll skip that and go Roger [Federer]. Three great athletes that I can ask a lot of questions to.“

Speaking about fulfilling dreams, well, Basavareddy is really a lucky guy! In December 2024, he appeared on The Changeover Podcast and during that podcast, Nishesh Basavareddy was heard sharing some wisdom he got from Roger Federer during their previous meeting. The Swiss Maestro made a surprise visit to Stanford University in March 2024. While sharing his thoughts about their conversation during their meeting, Basavareddy said, “We were joking around that none of us blinked for 10 minutes.“

He further added, “We got lucky enough that Roger came to visit us when we were at Stanford…and we were asking him about what he did for fitness like later in his career. He said that he didn’t go above like 20 lbs. Like if he’s going Bulgarian split squats, he’ll just be holding both and just doing it and a lot of it was like bodyweight plyo stuff like that.” 

Although he snubbed Federer to pick Djokovic as his favorite player, it’s needless to mention both these tennis stars are like a role model for all the young aspiring tennis players. When Basavareddy was asked to name a Novak Djokovic match that he remembers the most, he didn’t waste much time to pick the 2019 Wimbledon final. It was his first choice! In that match, Novak Djokovic defeated Roger Federer in a five-set thriller! Now, the question is, can he make his match against Novak Djokovic a memorable one by forcing a major upset at the 2025 AO? What do Djokovic and Basavareddy have to say about this epic encounter, though?

“He is going to be really pumped” – Novak Djokovic shares his thoughts about Nishesh Basavareddy ahead of their first-round match

Nishesh Basavareddy has seen Novak Djokovic up close before. He was a tournament-hitting partner at the 2023 Nitto ATP Finals. Novak Djokovic won the title at that time. Although the youngster didn’t share a practice court with the Serb during that week in Turin, it remained a highly formative experience for Nishesh Basavareddy. From getting called ‘The Indian Novak’ to getting the chance to play against him at one of the biggest stages of the game, Basavareddy has traveled a lot of paths in the last few years.

What does he say about facing Novak Djokovic at the 2025 AO? Well, last year we saw the young Croatian Dino Prizmic giving a tough fight against Djokovic in the first round of the AO. Prizmic even won a set in that match, and highlighting the Serb’s performance in the opening rounds, Basavareddy said, “Yeah I remember watching that match at school last year and that was I think a tight four-set match, almost four hours actually. Dino played really well. He’s my age, I grew up with him in juniors a little bit, so yes, matches like that definitely give me hope. Yeah, he’s struggled a couple of times, first round in Slams so I think that’s a good time to catch a top player. Maybe I can use that.“

Novak Djokovic’s first tournament in the 2025 season ended with a loss to an American! He was defeated by Reilly Opelka in the QF of the 2025 Brisbane International. What does he have to say about this young American, though? Speaking about Basavareddy in his pre-match press conference at the AO, the Serb said, “Well, to be honest, I don’t know much about him. I watched him play yesterday actually for the first time. I think he’s playing the semifinals of New Zealand tournament now. I saw that he’s very quick. He’s a very talented player. He’s got great hands. He’s very dynamic. He can serve well, hit spots. Just very complete game overall.“

He further added that he has no intentions to take this match lightly. “I mean, it’s going to be his, I guess, first time in main draw of the Grand Slam, wild card, playing on the center court. Not much to lose. I’m sure that he is going to be really pumped to make a statement. I have to obviously approach that match very seriously, like any other, and do my best to get a win. Also, enjoy the nice moment of sharing the court with him,” said Djokovic. Now, it’ll be interesting to see if Novak Djokovic can get a winning start to his mission of clinching 11 AO titles or will we witness the biggest upset in the first round of the AO? What’s your prediction, though?