When Novak Djokovic won the Roland Garros, the talk of the town was the biggest record in men’s singles tennis. With the Serbian now standing alone at 23 Grand Slam titles, it was all anyone could discuss, even sparking the GOAT debate once again in all its glory. Nole surpassed Rafael Nadal with this Major and had already surpassed Roger Federer a long while back, who sits at 20 and has now retired from the sport.
In all this talk about Grand Slam titles and the GOATs, many missed out on a superb record that Federer had in his kitty that Djokovic emulated following his victory over Casper Ruud, whom he beat 7-6(1), 6-3, 7-5. While easy to miss, this is a record that even the likes of Rafael Nadal, Rod Laver and Andre Agassi have never been able to match.
Novak Djokovic joins Roger Federer
Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Andre Agassi and Rod Laver are in an elite group of men’s tennis players who have managed to win all four Majors in their careers. Federer and now Djokovic, however, have also managed to win at least one final in each of the four Majors in straight sets.
Until this year’s straight sets victory in the Roland Garros final against Ruud, Djokovic had a straight sets victory at the Australian Open, Wimbledon and US Open. In fact, in Australia, which is also the World No. 1’s most successful Grand Slam, the Serbian has won five finals in straight sets. He pulled off this feat Down Under in 2011, 2016, 2019, 2021 and 2023. He’d also done the same at Wimbledon and the US Open, both back in 2018. Now with a straight sets victory in the bag at French Open, Djokovic joins Roger Federer, who has an even more impressive record.
How Federer got there
Federer was devastatingly dominant in the 2000s, before Nadal and Djokovic joined the fray. At the peak of his powers, it seemed very unlikely that Roger’s status quo would ever be challenged by any other player. This is reflective in the sheer number of straight sets victory Federer enjoyed in the finals of Grand Slams.
The 20-time Grand Slam winner has had straight sets victories thrice at the Australian Open (2004, 2007 and 2010), Wimbledon (2003, 2005, 2017) and US Open (2004, 2007, 2008).
Federer’s struggle to get all four Slams was very well documented and closely scrutinized. While Federer was very good on clay as well, he had the misfortune of playing in the same era as Rafael Nadal, the greatest clay court player the world has ever seen. Any time Federer mounted a bid to capture the Roland Garros crown, Nadal stopped him very resolutely.
Finally in 2009, Federer ran into some luck. Nadal, who Jo-Wilfried Tsonga claims was apparently unwell at the time, fell to Robin Soderling of Sweden in the Round of 16. For the first time in his life, Federer reached the final of the clay Major and did not have to face his Spanish rival. Facing Nadal’s vanquisher, Federer finally won his last remaining Grand Slam title with a straight sets victory, 6-1, 7-6(1), 6-4.
Boasting of a straights sets victory even in just one Grand Slam final is no mean feat. To do so after a grueling two weeks of 5-set tennis and beating a player hungry for glory across the net is mighty commendable. To do so multiple times is astonishing. But he fact that only Federer and Djokovic have managed to do so at all four Majors is testimony to how near impossible a task it is.
