One of the questions Novak Djokovic was asked after winning the French Open for his 19th Grand Slam title, putting him at one of the all-time record shared by rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, was whether at any time he was resigned to not be able to reach them.
The context was that, at the start of the 2011 season, Federer owned 16 crowns, Nadal nine and Djokovic just one.
And while Djokovic offered a straight answer Sunday night after beating Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-7 (6), 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4, saying he did not consider it “an impossible mission “Putting his trophy collection on a par with the other members of the” Big Three “club, what he mentioned next was instructive.
“I’m going to keep doing my thing, I’ll keep looking for it,” said the Serbian star on the historical table of the Slams that everyone has been watching since each of them exceeded the milestone of 14 that had been established by Pete. Sampras.
“At the same time, I will continue to pave my own path, which is my own and authentic. We – the three of us – have our own trajectories, and that’s it ”.
Certain. It is very important to remember. What Djokovic seemed to mean was: You have to judge me on my own merits. Look at all that I have accomplished. Don’t worry about the total slams. Please stop comparing me only to Federer and Nadal.
Is right. You have to give him credit. Instead of looking at Djokovic’s entire success story through the lens of how he fares against the other two, look at his track record.
This is not to suggest that Djokovic’s reputation or legacy will suffer when all three are mentioned together.
On the contrary, the opposite is true.
To consider:
– His victory against Nadal in the semi-finals at Roland Garros left him up 30-28 in direct history with the Spaniard. He also outscores Federer in a heads up, 27-23.
– Djokovic is the only man to have beaten 13-time champion Nadal twice at the French Open and is 3-1 against eight-time champion Federer at Wimbledon (3-0 in finals, including one in which lifted a pair of championship balls in 2019).
– Djokovic is the only one of the three – actually, the only one from the open era, which began in 1968 – who won every Grand Slam title at least twice (Nadal has an Australian Open; Federer one in France) and the The only one who has been able to chain four consecutive consecrations in the majors (he did it between 2015-16).
– Djokovic owns the record for most weeks as number one in the ATP rankings, eclipsing Federer’s mark.
– Djokovic is the only man to win every Masters 1000 series tournament twice.
– Djokovic, 34, has seven majors since turning 30, an open-era record; Nadal, 35, has had six, and Federer, 39, caught four.
When the All England Club kicks off on June 28, Djokovic will try to be crowned for the third time in a row and will try to keep the Grand Slam afloat in the same year. He could even complete the Golden Slam, if he wins the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics.
“As long as Novak is healthy – and he’s healthy right now; he’s in top condition – I think he can win the Grand Slam this year. I’m very sure of it, ”said Marian Vajda, one of Djokovic’s coaches, who joked that he and the other strategist who works with the Serb, Goran Ivanisevic, would resign if his pupil catches all four majors in 2021.
Djokovic was more measured on the subject, recalling that he had a historic campaign within reach in 2016 after winning in Australia and France, to be eliminated in the third round of Wimbledon.
But it doesn’t rule out anything in 2021.
“I am going to enjoy this victory and then I will think about Wimbledon in a few days. I have no problem going out and saying I’m going for the title at Wimbledon. Of course, yes ”, he affirmed.
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