Novak Djokovic is the best tennis player of the time, the numbers are clear. But the Serb wants to achieve something historic at the US Open – and fails bitterly. In doing so, he gains something else. That comes as a surprise.
Almost everyone had imagined it very differently: Late in the New York evening, a US Open final came to an end, for which a completely different script was planned. The Russian Daniil Medvedev beat Novak Djokovic 6: 4, 6: 4, 6: 4, the Serb had no chance whatsoever. He was chosen to make the evening historic. Instead, both of them produced a finale over the entire distance that was never exciting and yet ended in a bittersweet drama.
For Djokovic it was not a normal one of his very rare defeats, it was the death of a dream. You could even watch the big Dominator break something inside him. When the score was 4: 5 in the third set, on the last change of side of the game before Medvedev served to win the match, Djokovic became human. The 34-year-old was crying. First hidden in his towel, later during the first rally. Previously, he had already fought off a match point from the Russian, and the 25,000 fans in the Arthur Ashe Stadium, which was filled to the last seat, showered Djokovic with cheers, the long-denied affection for the great athlete – and the hope of one of the greatest comebacks in sports history.
“That was inhuman”
They wanted to witness something historical for which Djokovic had stood: the Grand Slam was near, the triumph of the four largest tennis tournaments within a year. No one has been closer than Djokovic since 1969, when Rod Laver last managed the feat. No Björn Borg, no Pete Sampras, no Roger Federer, no one. Djokovic had previously won 27 matches at the Australian Open, Wimbledon, the French Open and here in New York. The 28th win would have made him the greatest player of all time. And he wanted it so badly. But it wasn’t enough. Medvedev dragged himself to the finish with a service winner.
Djokovic had often shown moments of weakness during the two weeks in New York, four times in a row he had lost the first set up to the final, including in the semifinals against the German Alexander Zverev. But where he was able to use the initial difficulties to get a run-up, to use his strategic brilliance to readjust his tactical route, he never found a match against Medvedev. The Russian, for his part, played brilliantly, the number two in the world rankings always had answers ready, even when Djokovic switched to a completely atypical serve-and-volley at some point. Even three breakballs at the beginning of the second set did not bring Djokovic back. The 1.98 meter long Russian was the player with the better ideas in every phase.
“Of course, part of me is very sad. This defeat is hard to digest when you consider what was at stake,” said the Serb afterwards, disappointed. “You saw what was going on in him and what had built up in the last few weeks and months. That was inhuman”, described last year’s winner Dominic Thiem at “Eurosport”, what everyone could see: It was working in Djokovic and something was going broken in the course of the game. The belief in the 21st Grand Slam title, which would have made him the sole record winner in the major tournaments and thus, by numbers, the greatest tennis player in history.
“A victory would mean everything to me”
And numbers are important to Djokovic. As one of two career goals, he had once officially stated that he would collect most weeks as number one in the world rankings. That succeeded in the spring, in March he started with his 311st week at the top of the world rankings, now there are 338 – Roger Federer stands at 310. “If I have achieved the former, which I hope for in the coming year,” said Djokovic in 2020 “My focus will be even more on the Grand Slam tournaments in terms of approach, energy and schedule.”
In the eyes of many, many fans, its importance for tennis is measured primarily in numbers. Where Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal are admired and loved for their elegance, charm and fighting spirit, Djokovic is seen by many as a brilliant pragmatist. Recognized but not admired. Also because Djokovic lacks the wit of a Federer, this elder statesman of world tennis. The Serb flirted with esoteric ideas, the Adria Tour he initiated in 2020 turned into a disaster when the professional tour was suspended due to the corona pandemic. Like several other participants, Djokovic had infected himself with the corona virus.
The “happiest person”
On the way to the hearts of tennis fans, Djokovic repeatedly takes detours himself. In 2020 he was excluded from the US Open because he was furious and thrashed a ball at a line judge in the quarterfinals. Accidentally, of course. “A victory would mean everything to me. That’s why I’m here,” he said before the Wimbledon final, where he caught up with eternal rivals Federer and Nadal with his 20th Grand Slam title. Of course, people would also like to see an outsider win. “But hopefully people can also recognize the importance of this match for me. History is at stake,” Djokovic said at the time.
Now there was more to it than that. One can imagine the value of winning the US Open for the Serb. “I had no legs,” admitted Djokovic after the match, but he was “relieved” that his run was finally over. Instead of the 21st Grand Slam title, instead of the Grand Slam, this proof of ultimate dominance, which is not even achieved every 50 years, Djokovic won something in New York. In the end, the Serb was celebrated where he had fought his way through the previous rounds, also against the audience. The audience kept shouting “Nole, Nole” during the match, when the last change of sides the mood culminated in an emotional climax.
If you were pathetic, you would have to call Djokovic the winner of the US Open final. Maybe as a co-winner. He was the “happiest person”, said Djokovic shortly after the big disappointment. “Even if I didn’t win the match, my heart is filled with joy,” he said to the cheering people. “You touched my soul. I’ve never felt like this in New York. Thank you very much.” At the press conference he added: “Those were emotions like a 21st Grand Slam victory. I’ll never forget that.”
“Sorry Novak, sorry people”
For Medvedev, who celebrated the first Grand Slam title of his career, the triumph was great. But it is also part of his big evening that he is also part of his opponent’s story. “This is the most difficult speech of my life, and I would like to start it with an apology”, Medvedev opened his speech on the square: “Sorry Novak, sorry people that I prevented the big moment. We all knew what he was trying to do today has to achieve. ” And further: “I’ve never said that to anyone, but I’m saying it to you now: For me you are the greatest tennis player in history.” In just 145 minutes before, Djokovic had to suffer, the severity of the moment on his shoulders. He’s gone now, the historic chance is gone.
She will probably not come back: At least Rafael Nadal will return competitively from a longer regeneration break in the coming year. With Medvedev, Alexander Zverev, who had brought Djokovic the only heavy defeat of the season in the Olympic quarter-finals until yesterday evening and who was defeated by Djokovic in five dramatic sentences in the semifinals, and Stefanos Tsitsipas is the next generation of three contenders for victory in major tournaments. Dominic Thiem will also gain strength again. The months of ultimate dominance, they are exhausting and painful, they are very draining, even on possibly the greatest tennis player of all time. A touch of history wafted through New York, he moved on. The jubilation remains for Djokovic. And the recognition.
.