Novak Djokovic has continued to dominate men’s tennis with his remarkable season in 2023. However, there is one record that has still eluded the World No.1, a Calendar Slam. The Serbian has been on the brink of achieving the Calendar Slam four times in his career but has failed to get over the line. Most recently in 2023, Djokovic won the Australian Open, French Open and the US Open but lost the Wimbledon final to Carlos Alcaraz.
According to Tennis365, Former world number 3, Nikolay Davydenko has claimed that Novak Djokovic would have a 100% chance of winning all four Grand Slams if those matches were in the best-of-3 format. The Russian believes that best-of-5 matches are exhausting for any player. Davydenko further added that Djokovic, who is 36 years of age, is running out of time to complete a Calendar Slam.
“I think time passes, and every year it becomes more and more difficult to achieve. If three sets were played at the Slams, I would say that yes, there is a 100 percent chance of winning all four tournaments – this is not a five-game run.”
Davydenko used the Paris Masters as an example to prove his point. Novak Djokovic won the Paris Masters in 2023 and looked at his imperial best. The Serbian won the ATP Finals as well in November to end the season as world number 1. Both these tournaments were best of three sets, which Novak Djokovic dominated.
Novak Djokovic aiming to win all four Grand Slams in 2024
Novak Djokovic has declared publicly that he will aim to win all four Grand Slam titles in 2024. The Serbian superstar is still dominating men’s tennis and would aim to complete a calendar slam next season. 2024 is also an Olympics year and the 36 year-old would like to win an Olympics gold, a tournament he has failed to win so far. The World No.1 further added that he would love to beat the titles record of Jimmy Connors.
“I know myself perfectly, I don’t want to be arrogant, but I know that if I’m well physically and mentally, I’m able to do it. It also sounded unreal to win three Grand Slam titles this year. I would love to beat the record of titles won by Jimmy Connors.”
However, seeing the form and potential of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic might not have it that easy in 2024. Additionally, Rafael Nadal will be returning to the ATP Tour. It will be interesting to see whether the intensity of competition will get to Djokovic or not, as under his ex-coach Boris Becker, Holger Rune is already making steady strides. Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev from Russia will also contend for Grand Slams, making men’s tennis an exciting prospect the next season.
