As Novak Djokovic has spent the past two years mopping up 75% of the grand slam titles on offer, it has still been possible to hear some dissenting voices as to whether the Serb merits inclusion in the debate about the greatest male player of all time. Perhaps the biggest Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal diehards would disagree but after the world No1 won his fourth successive grand slam title and completed a career grand slam with victory against Andy Murray, surely there can be no doubt.
Djokovic’s 3-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 win means he has won 12 slam titles, putting him joint-fourth on the all-time list, alongside the Australian Roy Emerson, two behind Nadal and Pete Sampras and five behind Federer. He has won six of the past eight slams and at 29 and seemingly at the peak of his powers, he seems likely to push even Federer at 17. As a downbeat Murray said on Sunday: “What Novak has achieved in the past year has been phenomenal.”
“It’s incredibly flattering to know that Rod Laver is the last one who managed to do that [win four grand slams in a row],” said Djokovic, mentioning a man who did it in the same year, twice, in 1962 and 1969.
“There are not many words that can describe it. It’s one of the ultimate challenges that you have as a tennis player. I’m very proud, very thrilled. But I’m just so overwhelmed with having this trophy next to me that I’m just trying to enjoy this moment.”
From the minute he was beaten in four sets by Stan Wawrinka in the final here last year, returning to Roland Garros has been unfinished business for Djokovic, who was also beaten twice by Nadal. From playing on four successive days as he made the semi-finals after numerous rain delays, to dealing with adversity in matches, Djokovic seemed to address it all with a strange inner calmness, something that came through even as Murray won the first set.
“I entered the court quite prepared. I started well first game and then I dropped four games,” the champion said. “Nerves kicked in. I needed a little bit of time to really find the right rhythm and start to play the way I intended, which happened in the beginning of the second and practically until 5-2 in the fourth set. It was flawless tennis. I really felt like I played on a high quality and putting a lot of pressure on Andy’s serves and just trying to hang in there.
“When I broke him the second time and I got to 5-2 in the fourth, I just started laughing. I don’t know [why]. I had that kind of emotion. I didn’t feel too much pressure, honestly. Maybe I took things a bit too lightly. But we’re all humans and arriving so close like never before in my life to this trophy and winning it, you know, I felt it. I felt the tension and excitement, all the emotions. You name it.
“In the last point I don’t even remember what happened. It’s like my spirit has left my body and I was just observing my body … hoping that Andy will make a mistake, which happened. It was a thrilling moment. One of the most beautiful I have had in my career.”
For all of Federer’s and Nadal’s brilliance, Djokovic has taken the game to a new level. His return of serve almost defies belief, regularly to within millimetres of the baseline, even off the best of serves. His pressure is relentless, his movement verges on the ridiculous and his self-belief has become his biggest weapon of all, something that was not always the case when Federer and Nadal were in their pomp.
“In one way or another you try to compare yourself to them and what they have achieved before,” he said. “Nadal and Federer were so dominant in the sport when Andy and myself joined the mix. At the beginning I was not glad to be part of their era. Later on I realised that in life everything happens for a reason. You’re put in this position with a purpose, a purpose to learn and to grow and to evolve.
“Fortunately for me I realised I need to get stronger and I needed to accept the fact I’m competing with these two tremendous champions and, you know, then everything was [easier] from that moment on.”
Last year, Djokovic won three slams and lost in the final in Paris. Now, for the first time since 1992, the calendar grand slam is a possibility, with Djokovic having added Paris to his Australian Open crown. If anyone can do it, perhaps he can. “I don’t want to sound arrogant but I really think everything is achievable in life. Winning this trophy today gave me so much happiness and fulfilment. I’m trying to grasp and I’m trying to cherish these moments right now.
“Whether or not I can reach a calendar slam, that’s still a possibility, but I don’t think about it right now. I just try to enjoy this experience of winning the trophy that I never won before.”
Should he win Wimbledon in five weeks’ time, when he will defend his title, the calendar slam will be very much on his mind.
