Does Novak Djokovic have an American accent?
A short breakdown of Novak Djokovic’s English, from a WIRED Autocomplete interview clip.
Over 8,000 lessons taught · Updated Nov 1, 2026
The short answer
Not quite, but he is easy to follow. In Josh’s breakdown of a WIRED Autocomplete interview clip, Djokovic has good musicality and control at the back of the jaw. The stress still misses on words like “saw,” which is a verb and should be the big word.
What Josh points out
Good musicality
Josh notes nice pitch movement, a voice connected to the body and real contrast between stressed and unstressed syllables.
“Saw” comes out small
In “we saw each other,” saw is the verb. It carries the meaning, so it has to be the big one.
Two versions of “to”
In “starting to take it too personal,” both come out the same. A schwa on the first one makes the difference obvious.
Control at the back
He gets openness from the back of the jaw, so his stressed sounds still have a strong identity even with less movement in front.
What American ears listen for
Learners listen for the letters. Native speakers listen for the parts in between the letters: the size and shape of the sounds.
FAQ
Does Novak Djokovic have an American accent?
Not quite. He is easy to understand and has good musicality, but some stress still misses, for example on the verb “saw.”
What does Djokovic do well in English?
Josh hears nice pitch movement, a voice connected to the body and control at the back of the jaw that gives his stressed sounds a strong identity.
Why does “to” versus “too” matter?
When both sound the same, listeners have to use context. Using a schwa for “to” keeps “too” big and makes the meaning clear.
What can learners take from this?
Learners listen for the letters. Native speakers listen for the parts in between the letters: the size and shape of the sounds. Content words like verbs need to be big.
About Josh
Josh Lewis is an American accent coach with over 8,000 lessons taught. He helps fluent professionals get understood the first time in meetings, standups and client calls.
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