Novak Djokovic, champion who? (part 2)
Following up from the last article, we now consider the case of Novak Djokovic.
He is currently world no.3 and was once world no.2. He has ended each of the last four years ranked 3rd, and is a former Australian Open Champion.
Although, this is his only Grand Slam title to date, he has twice been a finalist at the US Open, most recently, after beating Roger Federer in the semis.
Another achievement he holds is being the youngest person to reach all four grand slam semi-finals.
6 Masters Series titles and a win at the Tennis Masters Cup, along with a bronze medal at the 2008 Olympics cap off a very impressive resume.
Had it not been for Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, this immensely talented 23-year old would have had a lot more trophies in his bag.
Djokovic had a very average 2010, considering the amount of talent that he possesses. He made the semi-finals at Wimbledon, but went out in the quarters at the Australian and French Open.
His loss at Melbourne Park was mostly due to illness, which greatly hampered him in his match against Jo Wilfred-Tsonga.
He also only won 2 titles all of last year. A reason for his bad form was his new coach, Todd Martin, who got Djokovic to change his serving action. This led to a very high amount of double faults, and his serve, once a lethal weapon, became almost a liability.
After he fired Martin and reverted to his old style though, he immediately improved. He got to the semi-finals at Wimbledon, but was defeated by a red-hot Tomas Berdych.
At the US Open, after some early scares, he made his way to the final. Notable in this tournament was his victory against Roger Federer. Despite being two sets to one down, the Serb finished the match 5-7, 6-1, 5-7, 6-2 and 7-5.
However, he lost to Nadal in the final in four sets.
The year-end championships were again good for Djokovic, and he made it to the semi-finals. Here Federer dominated Djokovic though, and beat him in straight sets.
In 2011, Djokovic participated in the Hopman Cup before the Australian Open. His run this year has been phenomenal. He has been playing his best tennis, winning matches dominantly. As his match against Tomas Berdych showed, the "Djoker" is on song.
Djokovic is a very well-rounded player. He is extremely fast, and this contributes to a strong baseline game. He usually hits deep, and is an excellent retriever. As a strong server, he usually dictates points while serving.
He is equally capable with both the forehand and his double-handed backhand, but prefers his forehand slightly. The double-handed backhand doesn’t hamper his slicing ability at all, and his drop-shots are a joy to watch.
Considering his skill, Djokovic is more than capable of going toe-to-toe with the top tennis players in the world. His upcoming clash against Roger Federer shall be a treat to watch, with Federer’s supreme aggression facing Djokovic’s perfect blend of defending
and then immediately pouncing.
Should he make it past the King, an amazing clash with either Andy Murray or David Ferrer, will await him in the final. And it is these two, who shall feature next in the series.
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