Exciting times to be a Novak fan...

[Great Hands]

There's been talk of how it's harder for Novak to get into the tennis record books, as he comes along after Federer, which is true, certainly in terms of Grand Slam total.

But there are a few highly realistic targets that Novak can aim for that no one has ever done before, and he can aim for them even over the next year or so.

- As people have mentioned today, Novak has just passed Fed for Masters titles, and is only 3 behind Rafa. A very doable record there - he could achieve it over the next year. And by the end of his career, he could have a number of Masters titles that will stand for a very, very long time.

- He needs 2 more Masters titles this year to solely hold the record he currently shares with Nadal, Laver and Connors for most Masters in one season.

- First player to win all 9 Masters events - if he can win Cinci.

- First player in history to win all of the 'big 15' tournaments in tennis - all 4 GS's, all 9 Masters, WTFs and Olympic singles gold - he's 3 titles away from this - RG, Cinci and Olympics. Nadal is 4 away - he needs Miami, Shanghai, Paris, and WTFs. Fed needs Monte Carlo, Rome and Olympics. I think we'd all agree that whilst Fed or Rafa achieving this feat seems like a long shot, Djokovic achieving it seems reasonably likely.

And of course there are the things that others have done, but very few:

- The Career Slam - still something only 7 guys have ever done.

- Career Golden Slam - if he can win RG and Olympics. Only 2 guys have done it.

- Calendar Slam - still a realistic possiblity if he can win RG - only 2 guys have ever done it.

Even though I am a neutral in this, I for one am very interested to see if he can do these things. It adds spice to the narratives on the tour at the moment.

Exciting times to be a Novak fan...

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Rafa is only 3 away as Shanghai would not count as a missing Masters (as he won Madrid which
Shanghai replaced).

But, it sure is exciting time to be a Novak fan.

With Rafa and Roger regressing and no new faces putting any serious challenge, Novak may have "open court" for the next two years at least and possibly even for four more years. Hope, he can make hay while sun shines (instead of reverting to his pre-Becker habit of losing GS-finals).

 

[Great Hands]

Rafa is only 3 away as Shanghai would not count as a missing Masters (as he won Madrid which
Shanghai replaced).

Of course, you are right - thanks for the correction!

 

[Great Hands]

Rafa is only 3 away as Shanghai would not count as a missing Masters (as he won Madrid which
Shanghai replaced).

But, it sure is exciting time to be a Novak fan.

With Rafa and Roger regressing and no new faces putting any serious challenge, Novak may have "open court" for the next two years at least and possibly even for four more years. Hope, he can make hay while sun shines (instead of reverting to his pre-Becker habit of losing GS-finals).

thing is, i don't really mind what he does - it's jsut interesting to me to see what he does, and how successful he can be.

 

[Kirijax]

It truly is a great time to be a Djokovic fan. The pressure for him to win the French is enormous. Can you imagine the disappointment he and all his fans will experience if he doesn't win it? But imagine the joy and relief and greater expectations that would come with a victory. Will be fun to watch.

 

[Murat Baslamisli]

I will take some credit for this as a Roger fan and say if it wasn't for him and the levels he took the game of tennis to, we would never have seen the likes of Nole.

Of course the hard work Nole put in himself, all credit to him there...well, most. After all he practiced to beat Roger...well, also Rafa. Rafa deserves some credit too...

You know what, screw Nole, he doesn't deserve anything...:snicker

FINE...Exciting times it is.:clap

 

[El Dude]

I think Novak will have the Masters record, certainly by 2016. And yeah, Novak fans should rejoice. He's in the middle of his second career year, one that could go down as one of the greatest in history - like his 2011 was. But savor it, Novak fans, as he's not going to get better than this and is likely to fall back to earth a tad next year, if still remain a 1-2 Slam threat for several more years and end his career with more than a dozen Slams, perhaps even surpassing Sampras, as well as 30+ Masters titles. Not a bad resume and certainly in the inner circle of greats.

 

[Riotbeard]

I will take some credit for this as a Roger fan and say if it wasn't for him and the levels he took the game of tennis to, we would never have seen the likes of Nole.

Should we be thanking you as Roger's emissary?

 

[Kirijax]

We've seen Sampras, Federer and then Nadal pass the previous Grand Slam record of 12 but how many champions have we seen in the past that fell far short of what we thought they would do? When McEnroe won his third straight U.S. Open at the age of 22, I thought he was going to break all kinds of records. Ended up with seven. When Becker won his first, he was only 17. Ended up with six. So many others like that. Djokovic looks like he's going to keep winning Slams for a few years, but the end could come quickly. Better win them while he can.

 

[Murat Baslamisli]

I will take some credit for this as a Roger fan and say if it wasn't for him and the levels he took the game of tennis to, we would never have seen the likes of Nole.

Should we be thanking you as Roger's emissary?

You are more than welcome !

 

[JesuslookslikeBorg]

yep..the grand slam is still on. 1 down 3 to go.

 

[El Dude]

We've seen Sampras, Federer and then Nadal pass the previous Grand Slam record of 12 but how many champions have we seen in the past that fell far short of what we thought they would do? When McEnroe won his third straight U.S. Open at the age of 22, I thought he was going to break all kinds of records. Ended up with seven. When Becker won his first, he was only 17. Ended up with six. So many others like that. Djokovic looks like he's going to keep winning Slams for a few years, but the end could come quickly. Better win them while he can.

Players peaked earlier back then - the greats of the 70s through 90s were playing at a very high level by the time they were 20 or so, some even earlier. Most of them were in decline in their late 20s, too.

Now we have players like Novak and Andy reaching their peaks in their mid-20s; Novak's first great year was 2011, when he was 23-24; Andy rose to a new level the following year, at age 24-25. Neither are showing any sign of decline (not counting Andy's mental lapses). Whereas maybe in the 70s-90s the usual peak range was from 21 to 26 or so, now it might be more like 24-30.

 

[tented]

yep..the grand slam is still on. 1 down 3 to go.

Early (controversial?) prediction: The USO will be the one which prevents Novak getting the calendar slam. He's had a relatively tough time there considering it's HC, including a 1-4 record in the final. Plus, if he gets RG and Wimbledon, by New York the pressure will be colossal.

 

[nehmeth]

yep..the grand slam is still on. 1 down 3 to go.

Early (controversial?) prediction: The USO will be the one which prevents Novak getting the calendar slam. He's had a relatively tough time there considering it's HC, including a 1-4 record in the final. Plus, if he gets RG and Wimbledon, by New York the pressure will be colossal.

Good points tented. RG and Wimbledon are in no way a given, but should he win them, the pressure will be enormous at the U.S. Open.

 

[tented]

yep..the grand slam is still on. 1 down 3 to go.

Early (controversial?) prediction: The USO will be the one which prevents Novak getting the calendar slam. He's had a relatively tough time there considering it's HC, including a 1-4 record in the final. Plus, if he gets RG and Wimbledon, by New York the pressure will be colossal.

Good points tented. RG and Wimbledon are in no way a given, but should he win them, the pressure will be enormous at the U.S. Open.

If it ends up that Roger wasn't able to do it in 2006-2007, nor Nadal in 2010, nor Novak in 2011 or 2015 -- three of the best players ever, at their peaks -- I question if it will ever be done again.

 

[tented]

I'll also throw in Novak's winning streak as part of his exciting times: 23 consecutive wins and counting. :clap

(I included the DC win -- his first match after losing the Dubai final.)

 

[Fiero425]

Truly good things in sight for Nole fans! :

 

[Billie]

Hi GH, so gracious as always, with this thread as well.

When it comes to this Nole fan, I must say that you are wrong about these times only being exciting. Since I was a 7 year old, my dad got me into sports, all kinds of sports, I've been passionate about many things, not just sports related and that passion continues 40 years later. I've had sports heroes before in my life, but the thing about Nole is the most special of them all. I doubt there will ever be another sports figure who will capture my heart as much as Nole did.

In short, this ride Nole has taken me since 2005 when I first heard of him and started following him, wouldn't change it for anything in the world, win or lose. It's always a good time to be a Nole fan.

 

[Great Hands]

yep..the grand slam is still on. 1 down 3 to go.

Early (controversial?) prediction: The USO will be the one which prevents Novak getting the calendar slam. He's had a relatively tough time there considering it's HC, including a 1-4 record in the final. Plus, if he gets RG and Wimbledon, by New York the pressure will be colossal.

Good points tented. RG and Wimbledon are in no way a given, but should he win them, the pressure will be enormous at the U.S. Open.

If he were to do it it would surely be one of the greatest displays of playing under pressure ever.

 

[Great Hands]

Hi GH, so gracious as always, with this thread as well.

Thanks, Billie!

When it comes to this Nole fan, I must say that you are wrong about these times only being exciting. Since I was a 7 year old, my dad got me into sports, all kinds of sports, I've been passionate about many things, not just sports related and that passion continues 40 years later. I've had sports heroes before in my life, but the thing about Nole is the most special of them all. I doubt there will ever be another sports figure who will capture my heart as much as Nole did.

In short, this ride Nole has taken me since 2005 when I first heard of him and started following him, wouldn't change it for anything in the world, win or lose. It's always a good time to be a Nole fan.