Who is the Greatest tennis player of all time? Many fans have debated this question over the past decade. The main three names that come up when debating about the Goat of professional tennis are Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic. These players are often grouped together as “the big 3” due to their era of dominance throughout the 2000s and 2010s. The Goat debate took hold in late 2011. At that point, it was already clear that Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal were generational talents. Then Novak Djokovic came onto the scene and turned Federer and Nadal’s rivalry into a rivalry among three players.
When Roger Federer won his 20th Grand Slam Title at the Australian Open in 2018, many fans began to consider him the undisputed Goat, but then Nadal won his 20th Grand Slam at the French Open in 2020, then Novak Djokovic won his 20th major at the Wimbledon Championships in 2021.
Some fans said Federer was the Goat due to his elegant playstyle and dominance at the Wimbledon Championships. Some said Nadal was the Goat due to his fighting spirit, love of the game, and dominance at the French Open where he won 14 titles in 18 years. Some said that Djokovic was the Goat due to his mental strength and knowledge of the game. But after 2024, it has become obvious that Novak Djokovic is the Goat of professional tennis.
In 2022, Novak Djokovic pulled ahead of Nadal and Federer and won his 21st Grand Slam title at the Wimbledon Championships, many predicted that this would be Djokovic’s last Grand Slam title because he has recently turned 36, and with many talented players like Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev, and Jannik Sinner on the rise, Djokovic would have a tough time winning another slam. But, 2023 might have been the best year of Djokovic’s career.
Djokovic started the year at the Adelaide International ATP 250 event, which he won. Then he went to the first Grand Slam of the year, the Australian Open, defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets to take home the title. Then moving on to the second Grand Slam of the Year, the French Open, Djokovic took down Casper Ruud in straight sets to take home that title as well. After that he went to the third Grand Slam of the year, the Wimbledon Championships, where he lost in the championship match to world rank number 1, Carlos Alcaraz in 5 sets. After this, Djokovic got his revenge, defeating Alcaraz to take home an ATP Masters 1000 title at the Cincinnati Open. Directly after this victory, Djokovic went to the final slam of the year, the U.S. Open, where he took down Daniil Medvedev in straight sets to take home the title and win his 24th Grand Slam. Then, moving on to the Paris Masters 1000 event, Djokovic defeated Grigor Dimitrov in straight sets to win that title. These accomplishments helped Djokovic reach world number 1 status again and qualified him for the year-end finals, the season-ending tournament with the best 8 players that year. which he also won, defeating Jannik Sinner in the final.
Then in 2024, Djokovic achieved the final accomplishment he needed. At the 2024 Paris Olympics, he defeated Carlos Alcaraz in the final to win his first Olympic gold medal.
Novak Djokovic has the most Grand Slams in tennis history with 24, he also has more ATP Masters 1000 tournament wins. He has more tour finals than any other player. He has more prize money. He’s been at the top longer than anyone, holding the record with a whopping 428 weeks at the world number 1 position. All of these accomplishments solidify Novak Djokovic as the Goat of professional tennis
