By winning the Australian Open and Roland Garros in 2022, Rafael Nadal has risen to 22 Slams. The Spanish phenomenon has left everyone speechless, displacing his eternal rivals Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer in the all-time ranking of the Slams.
The Swiss can no longer add more to his record, as he retired in September last year. Nole, for his part, has paid dearly for his decision not to get vaccinated against the coronavirus. The 35-year-old Belgrade native had to miss the Australian Open and US Open last season, but managed to limit the damage by winning his seventh Wimbledon.
In addition to equaling his idol Pete Sampras with seven wins at Church Road, the Serb moved one trophy or behind Nadal in the all-time majors rankings. The Serbian will test his game already at the 2023 Australian Open, where he will seek his tenth title.
Goran Ivanisevic’s protege will debut on Tuesday against Spaniard Carballes Baena. On the Tennis Channel microphones, Martina Navratilova discussed in detail the prospects of Nadal and Djokovic. “Novak Djokovic has the best chance to win more Slams in 2023.
The Serbian is the main favorite in three of the four Majors,” Martina analyzed. “Rafael Nadal is the big favorite at Roland Garros, but in the other three Slams he has fewer chances than Nole. Maybe some young player will be able to trip Djokovic, but this is the current situation”, added Navratilova.
In a recent interview, Gunter Bresnik made some interesting comments about Djokovic: “The 2022 season was undoubtedly conditioned by repeated absences of Novak Djokovic, who had to skip two Slams and all the American Masters 1000.”
Djokovic pays tribute to his parents
Novak Djokovic paid tribute to his parents Srdjan and Dijana after beating Roberto Carballes Baena.
“My parents, they were here in 2008 when I first won; hopefully they will bring me luck again,” Novak Djokovic said during his on-court interview. “Unbelievable atmosphere, thank you so much for staying this late everybody and also thank you for giving me such welcome and reception I could only dream of.
I really feel very happy that I’m back in Australia and I’m back here on the court where I had the biggest success in my career,” the Serb said. “Definitely this court is the most special court in my life, couldn’t ask for a better start to the tournament, so thank you for your support – I appreciate it,” he added.
