ATP ace compares Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz

09/17/2024 08:00 AM

Novak Djokovic has broken almost all men’s tennis records in the last 15 years, earning the title of GOAT according to many insiders. The Serbian champion has twice reached the Calendar Grand Slam - in 2021 and 2023 respectively - but had to give up just a few steps from the finish. 2024 was perhaps the first year that signs of decline were seen for the 24-time Grand Slam champion. Novak has not won an ATP title yet and will finish the season without winning a single Grand Slam title.

The 37-year-old from Belgrade has shown that he struggles to find the right motivation in minor events and has suffered the rise of young talents such as Italian Jannik Sinner and Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz. As if that were not enough, Nole had to undergo a knee surgery due to an injury suffered during the French Open.

Djokovic has ‘bet’ everything on the Paris Olympics, hoping to finally win the coveted gold medal in singles. The current world number 4 has played an almost perfect tournament without losing a set along his run and beating Alcaraz in a memorable final. The Serbian ace confirmed that he is a legend in modern sport and admitted that he will only play events where he is really motivated in this last part of his career. The 24-time Grand Slam champion will try to make himself ready for the 2025 Australian Open, where he will hunt for his eleventh title and his 25th Major.

During an interview with ‘We Love Tennis’, French ace Alexandre Muller paid tribute to Nole: “I had the opportunity to face Novak. The truth is I have never had this impression on a tennis court since then. It was totally suffocating. The guy leaves you nothing, not a crumb, it’s horrible. I played Carlos Alcaraz at Wimbledon, it was almost relaxed, Carlos lets you breathe a little, Novak, he always smothers you.”

Although not in his best form, Djokovic still scares opponents and can play at a very high level as he showed at the Paris Olympics. After the Davis Cup weekend, the Serbian legend opened up on his schedule: “Torino is not my goal at all, to be honest, I am not chasing ATP Finals, I am not chasing the ranking. As far as I am concerned, I am done with those tournaments for my career. Whether I will play in other tournaments this year or in the future, I can’t say right now. My main priorities are playing for Serbia and Slams, everything else is less important.”

After that (Shanghai), I am going to see what I am going to do. Usually in my career I used to have my schedule ready six months in advance, but nowadays that’s not the case, now it’s more spontaneous. Firstly, I need to physically, emotionally and mentally rest in order to even start thinking what I want to do next, in what way, how much and where.”

The 24-time Grand Slam champion is likely not to play many tournaments in the latter part of the season. Novak will also be playing a number of exhibitions in the coming months. He will play with Grigor Dimitrov in Bulgaria and Juan Martin del Potro in Argentina, as well as participating in the 'Six Kings Slam' in Saudi Arabia.

In a recent interview with Eurosport, ATP ace and former French Open finalist Casper Ruud selected Djokovic as the GOAT: “Djokovic is a tough nut to crack and certainly deserves to be considered the best of all time. There is no doubt about everything he has won. I often say that it is not possible to ‘round off’ tennis like a video game when there is nothing else to achieve, but in terms of merits and tournament victories, Djokovic has won all the titles possible. It was fantastic to see him win Olympic gold this season.”

The 37-year-old from Belgrade is the player who has won the most Grand Slam titles, the most Masters 1000 titles and also has the record of weeks at the top of the ATP ranking. Nole may be trying to beat Roger Federer and Jimmy Connors in the all-time tournaments won ranking, but his recent statements cast doubt on this hypothesis.

The two Grand Slam tournaments where he has the best chance of winning are the Australian Open and the Wimbledon Championships, while it will be more difficult to win other titles in Paris and New York. The Serbian legend needs to be at the top of his physical form in order to compete with Alcaraz and Sinner.