Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic proved that he has "no intention of slowing down", said AFP, after capping "another incredible year" with his record-breaking seventh ATP Finals victory. He "swept past" young stars Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner on his way to another triumph. After beating Alcaraz in the semi-finals, Djokovic beat "local hero" Sinner 6-3, 6-3 in the final in Turin.
The 36-year-old is still the No. 1 player in men's tennis, "by a good margin", and this season he has racked up "a host of new records". He took his grand slam tally to 24 singles titles with wins in Australia, France and the US, and also finished "on top of the year end world rankings for the eighth time".
Djokovic was asked what else he can accomplish in tennis, and he joked: "Well, you can win four slams and Olympic gold. I have always the highest ambitions and goals. That's not going to be different for the next year, that's for sure. The drive that I have is still there. Motivation, especially for the biggest tournaments in sport, is still present. For me, obviously those are grand slams and finals, and next year hopefully also Olympic Games."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
(Image credit: Scott Barbour/Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
Tennis fans will argue for hours debating the following question: who is the "goat" in men's tennis? Icons such as Björn Borg, Pete Sampras, John McEnroe and Jimmy Connors get a special mention in the greatest of all time discussion, but for many people it's a choice of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal or Roger Federer.
After winning the 2023 US Open, Djokovic has 24 grand slam titles – two more than Nadal. Following his retirement in September 2022, Federer finished his career with 20 majors.
Djokovic has dominated on Melbourne's hard courts with 10 of his 24 slams coming in Australia. Nadal is the all-time "king of clay" with 14 French Open victories out of his 22. Eight of Federer's 20 wins came on grass at Wimbledon.
Most grand slam men’s singles titles (all-time)
Novak Djokovic: 24
Rafael Nadal: 22
Roger Federer: 20
Pete Sampras: 14
Roy Emerson: 12
Big titles won (records since 1990)
In terms of big titles – a trophy at a grand slam championship, the ATP Finals, an ATP Masters 1000 tournament or an Olympic singles gold medal – Djokovic leads the way with 71 after his 2023 ATP Finals triumph in Turin. Nadal has 59 while Federer won 54.
Novak Djokovic: 71
Grand slams: 24
Nitto ATP Finals: 7
ATP Masters 1000: 40
Rafael Nadal: 59
Grand slams: 22
ATP Masters 1000: 36
Olympic singles gold medals: 1 (Beijing 2008)
Roger Federer: 54
Grand slams: 20
Nitto ATP Finals: 6
ATP Masters 1000: 28
Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic kisses the trophy after winning the 2023 Nitto ATP Finals
(Image credit: Giampiero Sposito/Getty Images)
Nationality: Serbian
Age: 36
World ranking: 1
Career titles: 98
Grand slam titles: 24
- Australian Open (10): 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2023
- French Open (3): 2016, 2021, 2023
- Wimbledon (7): 2011, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022
- US Open (4): 2011, 2015, 2018, 2023
Big titles: 71
- 24 grand slams
- 7 ATP finals
- 40 ATP Masters 1000 titles
Olympic medals: singles bronze at Beijing 2008
Rafael Nadal
Rafael Nadal won his 14th French Open title in 2022
(Image credit: Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images)
Nationality: Spanish
Age: 37
World ranking: 662
Career titles: 92
Grand slam titles: 22
- Australian Open (2): 2009, 2022
- French Open (14): 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022
- Wimbledon (2): 2008, 2010
- US Open (4): 2010, 2013, 2017, 2019
Big titles: 59
- 22 grand slams
- 36 ATP Masters 1000 titles
- 1 Olympics singles
Olympic medals: singles gold at Beijing 2008; men’s doubles gold at Rio 2016
2023 grand slam champions
Novak Djokovic celebrated his tenth Australian Open title in 2023
(Image credit: Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)
Australian Open
When: 16-29 January 2023
Where: Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia
2023 women’s singles champion: Aryna Sabalenka
2023 men’s singles champion: Novak Djokovic
French Open
When: 28 May-11 June 2023
Where: Stade Roland-Garros, Paris, France
2023 women’s singles champion: Iga Świątek
2023 men’s singles champion: Novak Djokovic
The Championships Wimbledon
When: 3-16 July 2023
Where: All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club, London, England
Where: USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, New York, US
2023 women’s singles champion: Coco Gauff
2023 men’s singles champion: Novak Djokovic
Djokovic vs. Nadal: the rivalry and head-to-head record
With 59 previous matches, Nadal and Djokovic have battled more times in their rivalry than any players in history, ATPTour.com said. The duo have faced each other 18 times at a grand slam: three times at Wimbledon, three times at the US Open, twice at the Australian Open and ten times at the French Open. Djokovic leads the overall head-to-head 30-29, but Nadal has an 11-7 lead in grand slam matches against his rival.
Head-to-head
Career matches played: 59
Wins: Djokovic 30, Nadal 29
Wins on clay: Nadal 20, Djokovic 8
Wins at grand slams: Nadal 11, Djokovic 7
Previous matches at Wimbledon
2018 semi-final: Djokovic won 6-4, 3-6, 7-6, 3-6, 10-8
2011 final: Djokovic won 6-4, 6-1, 1-6, 6-3
2007 semi-final: Nadal won 3-6, 6-1, 4-1 (Djokovic retired)
Previous matches at the US Open
2013 final: Nadal won 6-2, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1
2011 final: Djokovic won 6-2, 6-4, 6-7, 6-1
2010 final: Nadal won 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-2
Previous matches at the Australian Open
2019 final: Djokovic won 6-3, 6-2, 6-3
2012 final: Djokovic won 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7, 7-5
Previous matches at Roland Garros
Wins at Roland Garros: Nadal 8, Djokovic 2
2022 quarter-final: Nadal won 6-2, 4-6, 6-2, 7-6 (4)
2021 semi-final: Djokovic won 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-2
2020 final: Nadal won 6-0, 6-2, 7-5
2015 quarter-final: Djokovic won 7-5, 6-3, 6-1
2014 final: Nadal won 3-6, 7-5, 6-2, 6-4
2013 semi-final: Nadal won 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-7(3), 9-7
2012 final: Nadal won 6-4, 6-3, 2-6, 7-5
2008 semi-final: Nadal won 6-4, 6-2, 7-6(3)
2007 semi-final: Nadal won 7-5, 6-4, 6-2
2006 quarter-final: Nadal won 6-4, 6-4 (Djokovic retired)
Roger Federer’s career statistics
Roger Federer won Wimbledon eight times
(Image credit: Julian Finney/Getty Images)
Nationality: Swiss
Career titles: 103
Grand slam titles: 20 - Australian Open (6): 2004, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2017, 2018 - French Open (1): 2009 - Wimbledon (8): 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012, 2017 - US Open (5): 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
Big titles: 54 - 20 grand slams - 6 ATP Finals - 28 ATP Masters 1000 titles
Olympic medals: singles silver at London 2012; men’s doubles gold at Beijing 2008
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
register for free
Already have an account? Sign in
Subscribe to The Week
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Subscribe & Save
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Unlimited website access is included with Digital and Print + Digital subscriptions. Create an accountwith the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Mike Starling is the digital features editor at The Week, where he writes content and edits the Arts & Life and Sport website sections and the Food & Drink and Travel newsletters. He started his career in 2001 in Gloucestershire as a sports reporter and sub-editor and has held various roles as a writer and editor at news, travel and B2B publications. He has spoken at a number of sports business conferences and also worked as a consultant creating sports travel content for tourism boards. International experience includes spells living and working in Dubai, UAE; Brisbane, Australia; and Beirut, Lebanon.
'A direct, protracted war with Israel is not something Iran is equipped to fight'
Today's political cartoons - April 17, 2024
Arid Gulf states hit with year's worth of rain
Luca Brecel: Belgian ‘hell-raiser’ triumphs at the Crucible
Jakub Jankto: first current male international footballer to come out as gay
Novak Djokovic is now ‘surely unrivalled’ in tennis history
Novak Djokovic’s dad and the pro-Putin ‘Night Wolves’
Jim Ratcliffe: petrochemical billionaire turned Man Utd bidder
Pelé obituary: remembering the greatest footballer of all time
Jude Bellingham: from Birmingham to the Qatar World Cup via Dortmund
Gareth Southgate and England face ‘whole new level of expectation’ at World Cup
