“Without any disagreement, it was one of the best seasons of my life.”
Novak Djokovic (36, Serbia), the world’s number one men’s tennis player, was named ‘King of Kings’ this year. This sends a signal that the ‘GOAT (the greatest of all time)’ debate is meaningless for the time being. Djokovic defeated Jannik Sinner (22, Italy, 4th place), who is 14 years his junior, with a set score of 2-0 (6-3 6) in the final of the Men’s Professional Tennis (ATP) Tour Finals held in Turin, Italy on the 20th. -3) and was completely defeated. The ATP Finals is the final match of the season where the top eight players in the world rankings face each other and is a tournament called the King of Kings.
Djokovic, who had previously lost to Sinner 1-2 (5-7 7-6<7-5> 6-7<2-7>) in the group stage of the tournament, avenged himself by defeating Sinner in 1 hour and 43 minutes this time. did. He said, “Sinner had a great performance this week. “It’s very special to win the trophy against hometown hero Sinner,” he said. “Rather than waiting for the victory, I won it (myself).” Djokovic won the Finals for the 7th time (2008, 2012-2015, 2022-2023), the most in history. Until this day, he shared the previous record for most wins (6) with ‘Tennis Emperor’ Roger Federer (42, Switzerland, retired).
This year, the world of tennis was truly ‘Djokovic’s world.’ He defeated players who were at least the same age as himself, advancing to the finals of all four major tournaments this season and winning three times (Australian Open, French Open, US Open). At Wimbledon, he only finished runner-up after a full set to Carlos Alcaraz (20, Spain, 2nd place). This year, he set the record for the most wins in major tournaments (24 times), beating his rival Rafael Nadal (37, Spain, 662nd, 22 times).
He also set a record in the Masters 1000 series competition, which boasts the next level of status and authority after major competitions. Djokovic collected his seventh career trophy at the Paris Masters tournament earlier this month, building an unprecedented record of 40 wins at the Masters tournament. Second place in this category is also Nadal (36 times).
Djokovic, who already holds major tennis records such as being ranked first in the world for the longest cumulative period (400 weeks) and first in total prize money (approximately 227.4 billion won), plans to move forward next year toward the last remaining task. It’s an Olympic gold medal. Djokovic’s best achievement was winning a bronze medal in singles at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. He has not completed the so-called ‘Career Golden Slam’ (dominance of the four major tournaments + Olympic singles gold medal).
Therefore, he shows strong motivation to participate in the Paris Olympics next year. He said last September, “I am planning to participate in the Olympics (next year). “I hope I can prepare physically and mentally,” he said. “The Olympics are one of the most important events in world sports history. “It is a stage where I feel infinite glory representing my country,” he said.
