Novak Djokovic is the best tennis player in the world. His movement is superior, his versatility allows him more tactical options than nearly anybody, and he is adept on all surfaces. If he wins Roland Garros in a few weeks, he would be the form pick for Wimbledon and his game will always be suited to the Deco Turf courts at Flushing Meadows.
In the (short) off-season last winter, Djokovic switched from all polyester strings (mains and crosses) to a poly-gut hybrid. He has acknowledged that he has maintained the same control while this equipment adjustment has given him some extra pop. He has also worked really hard on pounding the weights. He is a physically strong young man, and keeps getting stronger.
It has always been common wisdom that strong, fast legs are essential to succeed on clay courts. I’ll accept that as a given. I know that Andre Agassi used to work really hard on strengthening his upper body in preparation for the clay court season. His reasoning was that balls bounce so high that he needed to be stronger to effectively handle those shoulder high (and higher) shots. The polyester strings enable players to generate more action than ever, so topspin groundstrokes just fly off the terre bateau.
This upper-body strength philosophy would help explain why the muscular Rafael Nadal holds such an edge on the dirt. I saw a replay of his 2005 Brasil Open victory, which was Nadal’s second ATP Tour title, and he has gotten visibly stronger and thicker in these past three years.
Interestingly, there was footage of Nadal working diligently on his serve on the practice courts of Rome. I recalled a story from last year’s French Championships when he was spending a lot of time on his serve. Mats Wilander wandered over to his practice court and asked him why he was working so hard on his serve during the French Championships. Nadal’s response was that he does not need a better serve to win on clay but he needs to improve this area to win Wimbledon. His response was not boastful, as he remains a humble young man. It does, however, speak volumes about his ambition.
I wish I knew what was going on with Justine Henin. About two months ago, I saw her training on the red clay of the Monte Carlo Country Club. She was doing intervals on-court and working on her forehand, which remains her dominant shot on the dirt. At that point, I would have suggested that she would absolutely be sailing into Roland Garros as the big favorite. Instead, Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, Elena Dementieva, Dinara Safina (and sixteen other Russians) are looking stronger. It could be a weird French Championships this spring.
Major kudos to the 22-year-old Dinara Safina. Over the weekend, she took her first WTA Tour Tier 1 title in Berlin. If her serve improves a little, she could be a major factor at the Big W this summer. This will be the year when she reaches her first major semifinal.
How about those American clay court grinders?!? First, Sam Querrey makes a run to the Monte Carlo quarters, and then James Blake and Andy Roddick reach the quarters and semis respectively at Rome. I would expect that there will be an American man in the second week of the French for the first time since 2003.
It appears as though there will be ten American men who will receive direct entry into Roland Garros. The only other nations in that league are France, Spain, and Argentina. There has been a quiet resurgence occurring in the Land of Coca Cola, highlighted by the 2007 Davis Cup victory. Who deserves the credit? Well, it seems that whenever there is blame about a lack of international success then the U.S. Tennis Association becomes the default whipping boy. Given that, they deserve the accolades at this juncture. Ryan Harrison and Chase Buchanan are young Americans in the pipeline, and these boys are positively among the best juniors in the world. As they continue to climb the ATP ladder, they will force other young Americans to improve to keep pace. Stay tuned.
It was a pity to see Andy Roddick need to retire during his semifinal match against Stanislas Wawrinka. Apparently, he tweaked his back while moving furniture into an apartment he recently purchased in New York City that he will share with supermodel fiancé Brooklyn Decker. Getting to the semis, especially with a gimpy back, was a tremendous effort for the New Yorker.
Speaking of Wawrinka, the Swiss Davis Cup team would be as formidable as any in the world- and on any surface- if world No. 1 Roger Federer would commit to playing a full schedule.
As we are in the midst of clay court season, many have opened the GOAT (on clay) debate. If Rafael Nadal wins this year, he will have garnered one more French Open title than the retiring Gustavo Kuerten, Mats Wilander, and Ivan Lendl. Meanwhile, Bjorn Borg won six French titles, including a record four consecutively- which is a feat that Rafael Nadal could match in a few weeks. Borg lost two matches in his career at Roland Garros, losing both times to the same player. Who beat him, and in what years? Bonus trivia: why did Borg NOT play the 1977 French Open?
To answer your trivia question regarding Bjorn Borg: He did not play the 1977 edition of the French Open because he had obligations with the WTT.
Great column by the way.
Do you really believe that Nole is the best player in the world?
I have to respectfully disagree. 🙂
I think that Fed’s mono at the beginning of the year has affected him, and I don’t think that Nole has the same type of overall game that Fed has…shots, strategy, movement. He’s close, but not quite there. As for clay, I think that Rafa is far above Nole at this point. Nole was helped after all with all the retirements in Rome.
And Nole lacks the one thing that makes all champions: the ability to fight through on court. He retires far too often (especially when he’s down…)
I think Nole does indeed have a better game than Fed or Nadal . Even Nadal seems to think so as he just said a few days ago he believes Nole will surpass him in the rankings . However , yes , the chink in the armour is the stamina issue and I am not sure what is the cause of that . I don’t doubt Novak’s will and resolve , he has that in spades . But he clearly has problems with endurance , at the moment , and that may be the limiting factor . I hope he can fix it .
Novak is no doubt one of the best players of today. But he is in no way “the best”. And I’m not just saying that because he’s not YET number one.
Yes, he’s good. It’s his attitude that he needs to work on.
Not to mention he’s world number one in retirements.
He is not the best indeed !
Federer is on the top of the game NO DOUBT !
Djokovic needs at least 4 years to be as good as Federer, although he is receiving a lot of support from almost everybody ( including you ) .
So you have to be reasonable & logic when you decide who is the best in tennis .
Djokovic is a3J ( Just Jerk Joker ) and he is impolite so I think it is an insult to Federer if we compare him with that 3J…………..
If he was the best in the world, then he would be ranked number one now wouldn’t he, and he isn’t so clearly he is not, at least not yet anyway. Just because Federer is showing a lack of form doesn’t make others who are currently showing form the better player. Federer’s record speaks for itself and its why he is still number one, and even on his day Djockovic would stand a chance against an in form Federer in my view, so its a bit premature to declare a new king.
Suzana,I think Federer is more arrogant with his statements, especially in the past. Remember when Murray beat him this year and he bashed Murray’s game saying Andy is a grinder and blahh..blah.. and when he lost top Djoker at AO and responded ‘i don’t care’ in an arrogant way when asked who he thought was gonna win the final? and years back when he called Nadal 1 dimensional, a grinder and that he had the game to dismantle him? Fed is cool most of the time but compared to Djoker he says more ****y, arrogant things..no comparison. Overall however, he carries himself like a champ..just has a bit of a sore loser streak in him.
I am really surprised by the fact that none of you ever noticed the way Djokovic applause to his competitors for a good played point.Djokovic-Nadal SF Montreal!!!
Novak did it then, also when he played against Bagdhatis, and many more times, and no it was not cynical.
You guys only see what you want to see.
As for greatness part,We can’t see the future…no one knows whether Novak will win another GS or not. I’m sure alot of people thought Roddick would after he won the 2003 US Open – he might have at least 4 if it weren’t for Federer. Heck, for years Roger was criticized for not living up to his potential in GS. Who knew that he would go on to win 12 GS after his first at Wimbledon in 2003? And it could very easily have been 15 by now had it not been for Nadal. Federer could very easily have had back-to-back calendar slams the last two years had it not been for Nadal. The GOAT debate would have been over last year!
Who knew Nadal would win three straight FOs? If it weren’t for Federer, Nadal probably would have won back-to-back FO-Wimbledons!!
Djokovic has 1 GS…but he could have had two by now if it weren’t for Federer. Federer might very well have won this years AO if it weren’t for Novak.
YOU JUST NEVER KNOW!
nothing would give me more pleasure than to see nole win and win and just keep winning…
then so much of what has been said in here would be just like so much gasssss.
ajde nole, you of the lovely smile, good looking face, exquisite down the line backhand, great muscled torso, funny sense of humour, and great PR. you are great for the game… i’m happy you’re in the mix…
and to you roger and rafa fans out there who say nole fans bring hate to this column, shame on you. it’s you bastion of status quo huggers (i prefer nole’s baseline hugging any day, thank you) who seek to deny a brilliant young man his due…
thank god for articles like these that recognise greatness for what it is.
ajde nole!
All i can say is this !
Thanks good for Djokovic !
Before Djokovic tok 3-rd place in ATP rankings tennis was almost boring.
Every GS or masters was going to either Rafa or Fedex.
And every final was decided between two of them.
Now finally we have a new top quality player and a three horse race.
Tennis just got more exciting and fun to watch !
I know some people hate Djokovic but to me this is good for tennis.
Quality competition brings excitement and good tennis !
Just relax and enjoy watching these gladiators fighting for ultimate prize , no.1 spot !
I have to agree with you James. It’s great to have more competitors for a grandslam. Makes the ATP Tour exciting again. The same is already going on with the top 10 / top 15 of the ladies where each and everyone can beat each other for a title.
A very good development in a game that is meant to be competitive 🙂
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