According to Juan Carlos Ferrero, Novak Djokovic surpassed Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer to become the greatest tennis player by learning a difficult formula. Carlos Alcaraz’s coach shared the commitment required for the world’s number one player to be the best, saying that Djokovic’s dominance in the sport was undisputed based on his achievements.
This year, Djokovic became the first player in the Open Era to win 24 Grand Slam titles, solidifying his place on the list of tennis greats. The Serb will hit a new record on Monday when he starts his 400th week topping the rankings. He is currently the leader for the most weeks at No. 1 in the world.
Carlos Alcaraz’s coach has called Djokovic the best player in the world and expressed his remarks: “With Djokovic’s numbers, there is no debate. You may like Rafa more, and you may like Federer’s style more, but in terms of numbers, the best in history is Novak. I’m not surprised. He is a player who lives for and wants to play tennis and achieve results at the highest level.”
Ferrero clarified that while he believed Djokovic was the greatest when it came to figuring out the ideal combination, it was difficult to balance a personal life with the commitment needed to play tennis.
Former world No. 1 added: “Everything he does is to be physically perfect, from food to rest. To be very good at something, you have to excel a lot in certain things. Those who really want to become very, very good have to be there for ages. It is very difficult today to want to have a life parallel to training and professionalism and to dedicate just enough to tennis. It has to be the other way around. Djokovic, in that, is the best.”
Juan Carlos Ferrero says we may prefer Nadal, we may love Federer’s style, but Djokovic is the best in history:
“With Djokovic's numbers there is no debate. You may like Rafa more, you may like Roger’s style more, but in terms of numbers the best in history is Novak. I’m not… pic.twitter.com/QM8vVeFxYB
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) November 17, 2023
Novak Djokovic in 2023
LWWWWWWLWW At the moment ranked no.1, Djokovic played his last match on the 16th of November when he beat world no.9 Hubert Hurkacz 7-6(1) 4-6 6-1 in the round robin in the Nitto ATP Finals (draw).
Until now, during this year the Serbian achieved an overall 53-6 win-loss record. Novak clinched 6 titles in 2023 in Adelaide, Australian Open, French Open, Cincinnati, U.S. Open and Paris. The Serbian reached the final in Wimbledon.
Rafael Nadal in 2023
Now the world no.664, Rafael played his last match on the 18th of January when he lost to world no.41 Mackenzie Mcdonald 6-4 6-4 7-5 in the 2nd round of the Australian Open (draw).
This year the Spaniard has managed to achieve a 1-3 win-loss record.
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal played each other 59 times. The head to head is 30-29 for Djokovic. Previously, 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.
You can see them in action in the following highlights.
