Novak Djokovic had an enviable performance at the start of 2020, so much so that he was unbeaten this season before the suspension due to the Coronavirus emergency. The World number 1 had led his Serbia to success in the ATP Cup and had won the Australian Open for the second consecutive time, in addition to winning the title in Dubai after risking a lot against Gael Monfils in the semifinal.
The Serbian champion is only two lengths away from Rafael Nadal’s 19 Slam, while Roger Federer’s all-time record is at -3. Nole could also have beaten the record of weeks at the top of the world ranking, held by Federer himself, but will have to wait at least for 2021 as the rankings have been frozen.
When the coronavirus crisis will allow Djokovic to resume those pursuits remains to be seen, but he admits they are a priority for him. “I’m always very confident in myself,” he said in an interview on In Depth with Graham Bensinger.
“I believe I can win the most slams and break the record for longest [at] number one. Those are definitely my clear goals, but that’s not the only reason I still play. I don’t believe in limits. I think limits are only illusions of your ego or your mind”.
By winning the 2016 French Open, he became the eighth player in history to achieve the Career Grand Slam and the third man to hold all four major titles at once, the first since Rod Laver in 1969 and the first ever to do so on three different surfaces. Novak is the only male player to have won all nine of the Masters 1000 tournaments.
