We reveal what sports goals can incentivize the Serb in the coming times and keep his competitive ambition alive.
Novak Djokovic has conquered all imaginable successes in the career of a professional tennis player, and many wonder if this could lead to a lack of ambition on his part, something that could hasten his retirement. The Serbian’s main driving force is his love for tennis, but there are still some challenges ahead that could excite him.
Winning the Olympic gold has been the crowning achievement that was missing for Novak Djokovic to complete a dream career. The Balkan tennis player dominates the vast majority of major statistics related to major titles won and the world No.
1 ranking. He had been fervently seeking to complete his list of achievements with a victory at the Olympic Games, so many tennis enthusiasts fear that he may feel a certain sense of emptiness now that he has achieved it, and may consider his career satisfactory at 37 years old.
He himself was questioned about this in Paris, with the gold medal around his neck, and he tried to distance himself from definitive statements, but made it clear that what drives him most to continue competing is his love for tennis and the desire to build an everlasting legacy that goes beyond results. Nevertheless, Novak’s competitive drive is beyond doubt, and there may still be statistical challenges that motivate and add to convincing him to make all the necessary sacrifices in order to stay at the top for a few more years. Some of them are reviewed here.
– Becoming the player with the most matches won in all four Grand Slams
Interestingly, Novak doesn’t hold the record for victories in any of the four majors, but he could manage to be listed in all of them as the player with the most matches won if he continues on the circuit for a few more years. He is 8 matches behind Federer at the Australian Open and Wimbledon, 10 behind Connors at the US Open, and his toughest challenge is to surpass Nadal at Roland Garros as the Spaniard leads him by 16 matches. Therefore, he would need at least three more years to break that record.
– Becoming the oldest Grand Slam champion in the Open Era
This longevity record is well within reach as he would only need to win the US Open in 2024. If he doesn’t achieve it, he will have the chance in subsequent events of this category. Novak has been a model of professionalism throughout his career and deserves to surpass the records of Federer and Rosewall.
– Winning each of the Masters 1000 tournaments three times
Before Djokovic burst onto the scene, no player had managed to win all the events that are now Masters 1000. Well, he accomplished it and, moreover, did it twice each. As if this weren’t impressive enough, he only needs to win one more event to be able to say he is the champion of all of them, at least three times. Monte Carlo is the one that eludes him.
– Being the third player in history to reach 1,200 matches won
Currently, the Serbian has 1,116 victories. It’s not far-fetched to think that he could win another 84 matches, although the fact that he significantly reduces his competition appearances makes the task more difficult. He would be the third player to achieve this, after Jimmy Connors (1,274 wins) and Roger Federer (1,251 victories).
– Becoming the player with the most titles won of all time
Jimmy Connors’ record of 109 titles seemed unreachable until recently, but Djokovic already has 99. He is close to becoming the third player in history to win a hundred titles and is near Federer’s 103. Overtaking the American seems more challenging, but he should never be counted out.
