Novak Djokovic paid tribute to his two biggest rivals, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, soon after winning his 23rd slam.
Following his triumph, Djokovic extended his lead over Roger Federer, who retired last year with 20 slam titles and Rafael Nadal, who has 22 Slams, in major competition. When comparing accomplishments, the 36-year-old spoke about his admiration for the Swiss and the Spaniard.
Djokovic commented: “I have always compared myself to these guys, because those two are the two greatest rivals I ever had in my career,. I have said it before many times that they have actually defined me as a player, and all the success that I have, they have contributed to it, in a way, because of the rivalries and the matchups that we had.
Countless hours of thinking and analyzing and what it takes to win against them on the biggest stage for me and my team. It was just those two guys were occupying my mind for the past 15 years quite a lot. In a professional sense [laughing]. It’s amazing to know that I’m one ahead of both of them in majors.”
Novak Djokovic in 2023
WWLWWWWWWW At the moment ranked no.1, Novak played his last match on the 11th of June when he beat world no.4 Casper Ruud 7-6(1) 6-3 7-5 in the final of the French Open to win his 94th career title.
This year Novak achieved a composed 27-4 win-loss record. The Serbian has won 3 titles in 2023 in Adelaide, Australian Open and French Open.
Djokovic will play next at the Wimbledon (Wimbledon). He will start the tournament from the main draw that will commence on the 3rd of July.
Rafael Nadal in 2023
Now ranked no.136, Nadal played his last match on the 18th of January when he capitulated to world no.68 Mackenzie Mcdonald 6-4 6-4 7-5 in the 2nd round of the Australian Open (draw).
Until now, during this year Rafael owns a composed 1-3 record.
Nadal is scheduled to compete next at the Wimbledon (Wimbledon). He will begin to play the tournament from the main draw that will commence on the 3rd of July.
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal faced off 59 times. Their head to head is 30-29 for Djokovic. The last time they competed against each other, Rafael Nadal won 6-2 4-6 6-2 7-6(4) in the quarter in Paris (French Open) in May 2022.
Here the video highlights.
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal |
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