Tennis superstar Novak Djokovic may have had an uncharacteristically short path to the U.S. Open semifinals in this year’s tournament thanks to three of his five opponents stepping down from play with injuries (automatically giving Djokovic those wins).

But getting to the final match and getting the title in the days ahead will undoubtedly call on the top-ranked tennis pro’s diligent preparation. And he has not been shy to say that prep happens as much off the court as it does on.

He is well-read on body awareness and mindfulness, ESPN has previously reported. He drinks lukewarm water during matches because cold water idles for too long in the stomach. And his spare time is actually carefully calculated by one of his trainers (and is actually his “recovery time”). Continue this article in Huffpost.