Novak Djokovic tells the story of his childhood dream frequently. As a seven-year-old, he wanted to win Wimbledon. Little did that young boy know that he would accomplish much, much more.
When the Serbian eventually embarked on his professional career, Pete Sampras’ men’s singles record of 14 major titles loomed large. Djokovic’s chief rivals, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal loomed even larger.
After winning his fourth US Open trophy on Sunday by defeating Daniil Medvedev in straight sets, Djokovic now owns 24 Slam crowns and shows no signs of slowing down.
“To be honest with you, I was probably not thinking so intensely and concretely about the history of the weeks at No. 1 or most Slams until maybe three years ago,” said Djokovic, who on Monday begins a record-extending 390th week atop the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. “Then I realised, ‘Okay, I’m quite close for weeks in No. 1. I also have a pretty good chance at the Grand Slams if I keep healthy and if I’m playing well.’
Of course the Slams at that point seemed a little bit less reachable than weeks of No. 1, but I believed. I believed that I’ll make it.
“I don’t put any number right now in my mind on how many Slams I want to win until the end of my career. I don’t really have any number.”
Djokovic has won a record 12 majors after turning 30, and seven of the past 10 Grand Slam tournaments he has played. For someone who once thought winning one Wimbledon title was a lofty goal, why put a limit on what he could achieve?
One of Djokovic’s only stumbles over the past few years came in the US Open final two years ago against Medvedev, the same player he defeated Sunday. Attempting to become the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to claim all four majors in the same year, the Serbian faltered and lost in straight sets, playing far from his best tennis.
“I really did my best in the last 48 hours not to allow the importance of the moment and what’s on the line get to my head, because two years ago that’s what happened, and I underperformed and I wasn’t able to be at my best and I was outplayed,” Djokovic said. “So I learned my lesson. My team, my family knew that the last 24 hours, don’t touch me, don’t speak to me about the history of what’s on the line.
“I really did my best to keep things quite simple and stick to the routines that brought me to where I am and treat this match really as any other match where I just need to win.”
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Djokovic did just that. The match was far closer than the…
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