Novak Djokovic Wins 19th Grand Slam, What Are the 19 Reasons That Make Him the Greatest?

Widely regarded as the greatest returner in tennis history, Serbian legend and World No. 1 Novak Djokovic made history on Sunday by becoming the first man in 52 years to win all the Grand Slams at least twice. With his victory against Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece in a five-set epic in the French Open final, Djokovic also captured his 19th Grand Slam title.

But what are the 19 reasons that make Djokovic the greatest of all time (GOAT)?

1. Djokovic is the only player to win the French Open after defeating Nadal in the tournament. In 2009, Robin Soderling lost the final to Federer after beating the Spaniard in the Round of 16, while Djokovic was defeated by Swiss Stan Wawrinka in the 2015 final after his quarter-final win over Nadal.

2. Djokovic is the only player to have beaten Nadal eight times on the clay. He has defeated the Spaniard twice at Roland Garros, and in all three clay-court Masters 1000 events.

3. With his second French Open victory, Djokovic became the first player in the Open Era to claim the Australian Open and the French Open titles in the same calendar year twice. Previously, he had won the Australian Open and the French Open in 2016.

4. Djokovic is the only player to beat Federer thrice at Wimbledon.

5. He has won seven Grand Slam titles since turning 30 in 2016. Djokovic now holds the record for winning the most Grand Slams in the Open Era after becoming 30 years old.

6. With his win over Nadal in the French Open 2021 semis, Djokovic registered his eighth win over a defending champion in a Grand Slam tournament – an all-time record.

7. Djokovic is the only player to hold all four Grand Slams on three surfaces at the same time. He won Wimbledon (grass), US Open (hard) in 2015 before winning the Australian Open (hard) and the French Open (clay) in 2016.

8. The Serb is the only player to compete in six finals at each of the four Grand Slam tournaments.

9. He has reached at least three consecutive finals at all four Grand Slams and is the only man to achieve such a feat in tennis history.

10. Nole, as Djokovic is popularly called, has made it through to at least nine semi-finals at all Grand Slams. No one had done this before him.

11. Djokovic has won nine Australian Open singles titles during his 18-year career, the most by any player in history.

12. He has won a record 12 Grand Slam titles on hard courts. He has won nine Australian Open titles and three US Open trophies.

13. In 2015, Djokovic won six ATP Masters titles, a feat unmatched by anyone to date.

14. In the same year, he progressed through to 15 consecutive ATP finals. This is a record for most finals reached in a single year.

15. Djokovic went undefeated against top-10 players in 2015, a feat unmatched by any other player in any other season.

16. He is the only player to win 60 elite titles in tennis including Grand Slams (19), ATP Masters events (36), and season-ending ATP Finals (5).

17. Djokovic has won each of the nine ATP Masters events twice. He is the only player to achieve the “Career Golden Masters” feat, that is, to win all the Masters trophies twice.

18. The Serb also holds the record for playing the longest final at three Grand Slam tournaments, namely the Australian Open (5 hours and 53 minutes), Wimbledon (4 hours and 57 minutes), and the US Open (4 hours and 54 minutes).

19. Novak also holds the record for accruing the maximum ranking points in the history of the men’s game, taking his total to 16,950 points in 2016. No one before Djokovic could reach 16,000 points on the ATP tour.