1️⃣0️⃣ years ago
Maria Sharapova protagonist of one of the most iconic trophy photoshoots we have ever seen
She had captured her second French Open title and fifth Grand Slam title overall
Andy Murray: “In 30 years’ time people who don’t follow tennis that much will look back and say to me, ‘you won only three Grand Slams’. I didn’t win all my matches against the Big Three but I won my fair few. I’m proud of what I achieved in the best era of men’s tennis by miles”
In love with this pic because you can see the pride of both players' eyes
Iga Swiatek completed an incredible run started in Madrid, Rome and ended in Paris, adding another Slam title to her now pretty big tally and making history once again
And Jasmine Paolini, despite today's…
For the first time ever the Top 2s of both rankings are going to be occupied by four players born after 2000
1. 🇮🇹 Jannik Sinner
2. 🇪🇸 Carlos Alcaraz
1. 🇵🇱 Iga Swiatek
2. 🇺🇸 Coco Gauff
The future is now 🙂
Victoria Azarenka on the flag incident: "I don't know what it has to do
with Novak. Don't know what you want us to do. These incidents have nothing to do with players, but you keep dragging players into it.
What's the goal here? You should ask yourself that question, not me."
It’s right imo that Djokovic and Alcaraz are clearly the two best players in the world right now
I just disagree when we put the other Top 10 players in the same category
Medvedev has been way better than the others and in fact has won multiple Masters titles on different…
Some Grand Slam men's singles records
Most match wins: Djokovic 370 (stands alone)
Most quarterfinals: Djokovic 59 (stands alone)
Most semifinals: Djokovic 48 (stands alone)
Most finals: Djokovic 36 (stands alone)
Most titles: Djokovic 24 (stands alone)
The truth is that
#Djokovic
is hated by many because he is not a puppet of the establishment. He’s a brave champion who wants love, but he's not just interested in showing off. I’m not talking about the vaccine, I’m talking about his whole life
#WeStandWithNovak
#AusOpen
Novak Djokovic starts today his week number 378 as the world
#1
From now on it’s official: no tennis player has ever spent as many weeks as first in the world as he did
Congratulations
@DjokerNole
, hats off for this outstanding achievement 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Daniil Medvedev's win over Alcaraz is a clear warning that tennis is not as simple as most people believe
He was able to learn from previous defeats and enter the court with an excellent game plan
According to some, he should’ve won no more than 8/9 games
He had other ideas.
Paula Badosa on Djokovic: “Mentally he’s a beast. Being so superior in every competition seems crazy to me. And he has the most complete tennis. Physically he takes care of so much... Right now you can’t say anything else, he’s the best. He has shown it. Numbers are numbers.”
Patrick Mouratoglou: "It makes no sense to whistle
#Djokovic
. If you don’t like it, you have the right not to come, it’s allowed. But when we come to watch the game, we have to appreciate these exceptional athletes, the spectacle they give us and encourage them. It’s the minimum"
Novak Djokovic among the best eight players of the Race 2022
Without playing Australian Open, Indian Wells, Miami, Montreal, Cincinnati and US Open
Winning Wimbledon and getting zero points
If this is not a feat...!
Among all the things Novak Djokovic does in a sublime way…
I have never, ever understood how is he able to bounce back so well after a tight loss, after missing a chance, after being in a difficult time
He is from another planet
Novak Djokovic: "The way I felt throughout the week makes me very satisfied with the current state of my body. I lost to a better opponent. I know that I didn't play well in some decisive moments, but it was also because of his quality of tennis. We move on to the next challenge"
Novak Djokovic on Eurosport: "I'm an easy target to be the villain. That's how they portray me, for me that is now a normal occurrence, but I will not tolerate injustice. Usually I don’t react, even though I could have reacted a thousand times over different things in the past."
Points needed by all the active players to reach
#1
for the first time
Federer 9,825*
Nadal 11,595*
Djokovic 13,285
Murray 11,185
Medvedev 8,615
Alcaraz 6,740
*Adjusted to the current ranking system
Today, Novak Djokovic starts his 377th week as the world’s
#1
.
Nole thus equals the record held by Steffi Graf and, next Monday, will become the tennis player (man or woman) to have spent more time as the world’s
#1
throughout the whole tennis history
Novak Djokovic: "For me the most important purpose is to serve players. We have thousands of players competing all over the world. Unfortunately only 400 live from tennis. We are the 3rd most watched sport worldwide, but we can't have more than 400 people making a living from it"
You play Collins, Rybakina and Swiatek in the same tournament...
...and you still manage to be one point away from winning the title
Aryna Sabalenka, you are amazing 🙌🏼
Alexander Zverev: "I was always told that I would never make it with diabetes. At some point I thought to myself, I'm world
#2
, I'm Olympic champion, I can help others with this issue! I want to show that everything is possible with diabetes. That's why I made it public"
Alex Corretja on Novak
#Djokovic
: “If his week record as world number 1 was held by
#Nadal
or
#Federer
, it would be permanently highlighted as something inaccessible and unbeatable. But it went almost completely unnoticed. It's definitely unfair”
Novak Djokovic on Kyrgios: “He was one of the few who supported me last year, and I appreciate that. In those moments you can see who really supports you and stands by your side. He gave me unconditional support in difficult moments. Our relationship has changed for the better."
Flavio Cobolli about Djokovic: "Seeing the strongest player ever being out of the top 20 at the end of the year is not good for tennis and will certainly weigh on us all. It's right to let him play in America because it's also thanks to him that tournaments are more beautiful"
Reminder of how incredibly well balanced Novak Djokovic's wins count is between the four Grand Slams
Australian Open - 94
French Open - 94
Wimbledon - 92
US Open - 88
Absurd 🥸
Nick
#Kyrgios
: "I am on Djokovic’s side. He is not a danger to public health, he is not a weapon of mass destruction. He came here to play tennis, he’s not hurting anyone".
#AusOpen
Novak Djokovic on Hurkacz: “It will be the toughest challenge for me so far. I’ve seen how he’s playing, he’s very comfortable on grass. No sets dropped. He beat Federer here few years ago and doesn't mind playing in big stadiums. He's a good guy, it's going to be a great battle”
Carlos Alcaraz: “Many people want to create controversy but no. Clenching your fists helps maintain intensity and I don't blame Djokovic for doing that. If I were facing someone who was injured or not playing at his best, I would likely do the same. Closing a match is never easy”
Andrey
#Rublev
to Novak
#Djokovic
: "You are one of the strongest tennis players in history. For me, it's an honor to share the court with you, I will never be able to do everything you have done. I hope you can continue playing for so many years, I can’t wait to face you again"
Tommy Paul on Djokovic: "He's an impressive player. Inside the locker room, nobody wants to see him in his part of the draw. Facing him here was a great experience. Obviously I wish I could have played much better, but he was the one who made me play badly, he's a great player."
For the 5th time in his career, Novak Djokovic wins at least 25 straight Grand Slam matches
No other male player has been able to extend his streak to 25 more than twice in the Open Era
Alexander Zverev: "Djokovic has completely dominated tennis in the last 12 years. There's a reason why he's been at the top consistently. He's the player with most weeks as
#1
ever, male or female. I'm sure he's going to break more records. The ones left, maybe he'll break them."
Sergiy
#Stakhovsky
to 'La Stampa': "
#Djokovic
sent me a message of support, we even chatted a bit. I tried to contact
#Federer
and
#Nadal
, I’m sorry they preferred silence. I understand them, it’s not their war. We have the support of great personalities, I hope it lasts"
Carlos Alcaraz: "I was physically perfect, I just didn't feel comfortable. He has made me feel uncomfortable on court. He has been aggressive all the time, it's been hard for me to stay in the rallies. I have made many mistakes that I don't usually make. He deserved to win."
Novak Djokovic is one win away from standing alone as the man with the most Grand Slam titles, from being back at
#1
in the ATP Ranking and from being the first man able to win all the Grand Slams at least 3 times
History is on the line
Stefanos Tsitsipas on Djokovic: "He's the most consistent. A perfectionist who took tennis to another level. His diet, his physical work, his elasticity and his professionalism in each of the areas. I think there’s not a single thing he neglects. I personally feel very inspired"
Year-end
#1
in the last 13 years
2011: Djokovic
2012: Djokovic
2013: Nadal
2014: Djokovic
2015: Djokovic
2016: Murray
2017: Nadal
2018: Djokovic
2019: Nadal
2020: Djokovic
2021: Djokovic
2022: Alcaraz
2023: Djokovic
Casper Ruud: "I don't play tennis because I want the media to
write good about me or write that I won or whatever. I play
because I love competing. I love to try to win. Whatever might be written about me
or not, that's not going to be in my head."
A masterpiece statement.
Andy Murray: “I’m totally behind equal prize money. I always felt like when we're competing at the same event on the same courts, we should be playing for the same prize money. But I think for it ever to become truly equal, the WTA and the ATP are actually going to work as one”.
Novak
#Djokovic
: "I personally believe there's no need to suspend Russian players. Competing is their right: there's a rule against discrimination in tennis, which states that everyone can play according to his ranking and not his nationality. Wimbledon has violated it"
🎙️Tommy Paul about Jannik Sinner
"He's been playing awesome tennis. My fitness trainer taught me a term that they use in Argentina. When somebody is playing unbelievable, they say they're playing naked, and he's absolutely playing naked right now."
John McEnroe on Djokovic: "I think it's stupid they don't let him to play. I would have been vaccinated in his place, but you have to respect his way of thinking. We have been living with the pandemic for two and a half years and they don't let him to play, I consider it a joke"
Victoria Azarenka: “This conversation about shaking hands is not a life-changing conversation. I thought it was a great tennis match. If people are going to be focusing only on handshakes, that’s a shame. I just did what I thought was respectful towards her decision.”
🎙️Ons Jabeur about Ostapenko
"The truth is that everyone has a different personality on the court. Everyone knows Jelena. She always tells me that sometimes the demons she has in her head come to light in the middle of a match, so I understand her. I was very motivated, perhaps…
Roger Federer: "Nobody’s allowed to say ‘I’m tired’ today, because it looks like you’re weak. That’s why players end up having mental problems sometimes, because you’re always supposed to show strength but we are also not machines – we’re also just human beings."
Stefanos
#Tsitsipas
: "Del Potro has always been my favourite tennis player, along with Federer. I grew up watching him play, and now I’m so sorry to see him announce his retirement in tears. He has had a huge impact both in my career and in the entire world of tennis"
Novak Djokovic: "A lot of people still have a wrong idea of what happened. 2/3 more people came before with the same exemption. I came in with all the valid papers. Everything got out of hand, then I was labelled this or that. I have to say that media presented it in a wrong way"
Her ability to suffer, to accept criticism, to work with her head down not caring what was said about her, her strength and her smile, but also the tears that made her incredibly human
Maria Sakkari is the WTA 1000 Guadalajara champion, and it feels very well deserved ❤️
🎙️Danielle Collins
"Like me, there are a lot of women and people whose goal is to have children. It is hard when you are constantly being challenged about that issue, especially publicly. In a press conference a few days ago someone said "what could change your mind?" I found…
Victoria Azarenka: "I
can resonate what Novak said the other day.
There's incredible desire
for a villain and hero story that has to be written. We're not villains or heroes, we are human beings. Assumptions and judgments are
shit because nobody's there to see the full story"
Andy Murray: “I know I’m fortunate to be playing tennis, but playing at four in the morning I don’t think it helps the sport that much when you know everyone’s leaving because they have to go and get public transport home and you finish a match like that in front of 10% of the…
Rafael Nadal: "My greatest rival is Novak Djokovic. After all, he's the one who's closest to my number of Grand Slams, with 21. And for all the times we’ve faced each other, for our history. Among the active players, my most dangerous rival, no doubt, is Novak"
Craig Tiley on Djokovic: "He’s so focused on what he eats, what he drinks, when he does it, how he does it. He’s been through a lot and to win 10 Australian Opens, I don’t think it’s ever going to be repeated. He’ll hold a significant place in the history of the Australian Open."
• Jannik Sinner
• Daniil Medvedev
• Carlos Alcaraz
Three players have reached the SFs in both Indian Wells and Miami 2023
2011 the last time it has happened
• Novak Djokovic
• Rafael Nadal
• Roger Federer
Novak Djokovic: "It's interesting to see how the narrative surrounding me continues, narrative that's different compared to other players that have been going through similar situation. I am used to it, and it just gives me extra strength and motivation. So I thank them for that"
4 years ago, Novak Djokovic won his first title in Cincinnati and became the first player in history to complete the Career Golden Masters (now he has two).
He's still today the only male player ever able to triumph in all the Big Events held annually, and he's done it twice
Aryna Sabalenka: "I decided to stop working with a psychologist, I realised that nobody than me will help, you know? Hoping that someone will fix my problem, it’s not fixing it. I have to take this responsibility. I’m not working with psychologist any more. I’m my psychologist!"
According to the data available on Tennis Abstract, never Carlos Alcaraz had a '1st serves in' percentage as high as tonight (84%)
Novak Djokovic broke in 3/8 return games
Novak
#Djokovic
to L'Equipe: "I don’t like people who pretend to be perfect on and off the court, perfection doesn’t exist. That’s why I love
#Medvedev
and
#Zverev
: they are authentic, they admit their mistakes and they do everything to make up for it. We have a great friendship"
Novak Djokovic has reached at least 10 semifinals in every Grand Slam
Australian Open: 10
Roland Garros: 11
Wimbledon: 11
US Open: 12
Completeness. 💥💥💥💥
🎙️Stan Wawrinka about Andy Murray
"For me, he was part of this Big Four era. From 18 years old until 30 he was always fighting with the Big Three, he was always there. Let’s put it that way, he won ‘only’ three Slams because all the other were taking but he was always in the…
Novak Djokovic: "That’s why I keep on playing tennis, because I want to be the best, I want to win the biggest tournaments in the world. There's no secret about it. I like my chances. I always like my chances. When I’m healthy, on this court I have chances really against anybody"
Novak Djokovic: “I don’t know what the future holds, but I know that what I hold in my mind is a huge hunger still to win trophies, make history of this sport, compete on the highest level all around the world, bring good emotions to tennis fans. That’s what drives me a lot.”
Daniil Medvedev: "I like when Novak wins Slams, if of course he’s not facing me. I like many things about Novak, he was so kind to me since I was a kid, since I first met him when I was world
#480
. He was always the same, no matter if I’m
#1
or
#480
, I respect him a lot for this"
🚨 STAT ALERT 🚨
According to , Novak Djokovic has won at least 20 matches in a row for the 10th different time in his career
He's the first man able to do it so many times in the Open Era
Novak Djokovic: “I’m aware of the tiebreak streak. I think the longer the streak goes, I guess mentally the more resilient or tougher I am in these particular situations. Coming into every tiebreak now I think my opponents also know about that record, mentally makes a difference”
Anyone who knows me knows how fundamental Novak Djokovic was in bringing me closer to tennis 13 years ago, starting an adventure for which I am still grateful today
That’s why I feel super privileged to be able to witness history with him, that’s why every Grand Slam title feels…