By Richard Pagliaro | @Tennis_Now | Monday, November 20, 2023
No champion delivers dazzling encores fairly like Novak Djokovic does.
World No. 1 Djokovic demolished residence hero Jannik Sinner to seize his document seventh ATP Finals championship in Turin on Sunday.
Extra: Alcaraz Sweeps Into Djokovic Rematch in Turin
Djokovic’s dominant weekend noticed him sweep world No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz and No. 4 Sinner in succession to win his ATP-best seventh title of the season.
It was a superlative season that noticed Djokovic win seven of the 12 tournaments he performed, together with claiming three of the 4 Grand Slam championships, safe his record-extending eighth season as year-end No. 1, acquire his 98th profession title and launch his four-hundredth week as world No. 1.
So what does the 36-year-old Serbian celebrity have deliberate for a 2024 encore?
“Effectively, you’ll be able to win 4 slams and Olympic gold,” Djokovic advised the media in Turin with a smile.
Given Djokovic’s 55-6 document this season and the very fact he introduced his finest on the greatest occasions you’ll be able to’t low cost his run on the Golden Slam.
In 1988, Steffi Graf made historical past as the one participant—male or feminine—to win the Golden Slam capturing all 4 main championships and the Olympic gold medal—the Olympic tennis occasion was staged after the US Open when Graf gained gold—in the identical season.
The Olympic gold medal is about the one high tennis prize lacking from Djokovic’s trophy assortment.
Testing Djokovic’s Golden Slam dream is the very fact the 2024 Olympic tennis match will probably be staged on Roland Garros’ pink clay in Paris.
A grasp of all surfaces, reigning Roland Garros champion Djokovic will face a speedy floor adjustment.
“[The Olympics] is unquestionably one of many main objectives for subsequent 12 months, aside from Grand Slams,” Djokovic advised the media in Turin. “It’ll be very congested schedule with going from the slowest to the quickest floor in sport again to the slowest. Clay, grass, clay, then arduous court docket. Clearly that is a really demanding, difficult stretch of the 12 months.
“I’ll have to talk with my workforce to see how we will plan out our preparations, coaching, in order that I will play my finest tennis the place I wish to.”
The ten-time Australian Open champion will attempt to lead Serbia to a different Davis Cup championship later this month. Djokovic has lots to look ahead to in 2024: he’ll purpose to win a record-extending eleventh Australian Open title and if he does he’ll declare his twenty fifth main championship breaking the all-time document he shares with Corridor of Famer Margaret Court docket.
Djokovic is 2 titles away from his a hundredth profession championship and can be a part of Jimmy Connors (109 profession titles) and rival Roger Federer (103 titles) as simply the third man in Open Period historical past to win 100 or extra singles championships.
Picture credit score: Worldwide Tennis Federation Fb
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