Djokovic’s Dominance in Tennis: Comparing Names Across History

Comparing names across tennis history is still attractive, but also a bit absurd. The mere sum of victories is definitely not enough for this. Contemporary competition, unmistakable style, and last but not least, the aesthetic enjoyment of the game are also important. Therefore, Djokovic’s ‘opponents’ remind us that he won nine of his biggest titles since 2019, when age and injuries were already taking their toll on Federer. And the new tennis generation did not reach the championships of their predecessors.

“The players that Djokovic influenced so much with his extremely demanding style often ended up on the operating table. Andy Murray three times, Rafael Nadal and Federer twice. The Serb also knows how to deal with the generation of Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev, who were supposed to replace him,” Kukal reminded.

What is not in dispute, however, is Djokovic’s unattainable physique. He is the real fitness king of world tennis. Extreme speed, flexibility, rubber body. In addition, an extraordinary return, perfect defense and the ability to change strategy during the match.

The long-awaited Paris duel with Carlos Alcaraz showed that at the age of thirty-six, Djokovic’s body can handle extreme loads much better than the muscles of the twenty-year-old Spaniard, who had been struggling with unrelenting cramps since the end of the second set.

“Alcaraz has completely exhausted himself with pointless sprints. I also talked about it with the former world number one Thomas Muster, who said that if the Spaniard intends to continue like this, he will be in worse health than Nadal by the age of 25,” mentioned Kukal. “I can see from my opponents that they feel a lot of pressure against me, Djokovic also admits.

After this year’s French Open, he already has at least three titles from each Grand Slam. Thanks to the extraordinary care of his body, he will be aiming for his 24th laurels at Wimbledon and most likely also the seasonal Grand Slam, which eluded him two years ago when he lost to Daniil Medvedev in the final at the US Open. In men’s singles, only American Don Budge (1938) and Australian Laver (1962, 1969) have won it twice.

Even with this bulletproof argument, however, Djokovic would not go well with some comparators of sports epochs. One of the reasons is the unacknowledged tennis elitism. After all, you can hear it every year from the audience at Djokovic’s Grand Slam matches. Parisian boos, flamboyant Wimbledon cheering for opponents, New York whistles. Part of the audience will not accept that world tennis has been dominated for a long time by a representative of a country from South-Eastern Europe, who, according to them, is arrogant and does not have Federer’s gentlemanliness and Nadal’s fairness.

Even after the undignified treatment at last year’s Australian Open, where Djokovic arrived after being granted an exemption from mandatory vaccination, after which he was deported, the Serb showed extreme mental strength, which returned him to the head of the tennis peloton.

The best player in history will never be for someone. But after Federer’s adieu and during Nadal’s recovery, the native of Belgrade still reminds us that we live in an exceptional tennis era. “Even in fifty years, Djokovic will be at the top of the Grand Slam rankings. Nobody comes close to him,” thinks John McEnroe, winner of three Wimbledons and four US Opens.