Novak Djokovic proved to the world that he is not just one of the big four in Tennis, but the best when it comes to pure statistics and being the ultimate beast on the court. Apart from losing to Carlos Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final, Djokovic from Adelaide International in January 2023 to the ATP tour final in November 2023 was just spotless, winning nearly everything that came his way.
Starting with the Australian Open where he beat Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets to win his 22nd Grand Slam title and equalled Rafale Nadal for most titles by a men’s singles player. But after that, Djokovic went through a bout of losses. Danil Medvedev beat him at the Dubai International final and Lorenzo Musetti, Dusan Lajovic and Holger Runne in the Monte Carlo Masters, Sprska Masters and Italian Open respectively.
But bounceback is Djokovic’s second name and he did it in style and won the French Open, beating Casper Rudd in the final, once again in straight sets 7-6. 6-3, 7-5. With this, he won his 23rd grand slam and became the first man to do so.
He went past Nadal among men and equalled Serena Williams to become only the second player to win 23 Grand Slam titles in the Open era. He played no more tournaments and went straight into the Wimbledon. As a result, he reached the final, but lost to Alcaraz and once again missed out on winning the calendar grand slam.
In August, he took revenge against Alcaraz by beating him in the final of the Cincinnati Masters, winning the only ATP 1000 title that had eluded him among nine. By winning this, the Djoker became the only player in history to win all the Masters tournaments
From Cincinnati, Djokovic headed to the US Open and over there too, he won the grand slam in straight sets to be crowned the champion and become the only player apart from Margret Court in any era to win 24 grand slam titles.
Djokovic’s year got even better as he won the ATP tour finals and went past Roger Federer to become the only men’s singles player to win the tour final record seven times. He beat Jannik Sinner in the final. At the end of the year, Djokovic was the number one ranked singles player in the ATP rankings, becoming the only player to end the year a record eight times as the number one ranked player.
Apart from Djokovic, youngster Alacaraz’s rise was also a great phenomenon in Tennis this year. Alcaraz reached the semi-final of three grand slams, winning one and losing two without reaching the final. His win at Wimbledon established him as the future star. With Rafael Nadal announcing at the end of the year that he will be back in 2024 with Brisbane International, it would be interesting to see how the two Spaniards, at the opposite end of the spectrum face the Serbian King of the court.
Apart from Djokovic, youngster Alacaraz’s rise was also a great phenomenon in Tennis this year. Alcaraz reached the semi-final of three grand slams, winning one and losing two without reaching the final. His win at Wimbledon established him as the future star. With Rafael Nadal announcing at the end of the year that he will be back in 2024 with Brisbane International, it would be interesting to see how the two Spaniards, at the opposite end of the spectrum face the Serbian King of the court.