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Novak Djokovic (Source: X)
Novak Djokovic has probably won everything under the sky that a tennis player can with his recent Olympic triumph. The 37-year-old clinched his maiden gold medal in his fifth and perhaps final attempt at the 2024 Paris Olympics, defeating his new nemesis, Carlos Alcaraz. Notably, he did not drop a single set en route to his historic achievement.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion seems to have settled the Greatest of All Time (GOAT) debate in tennis. Although the Serbian does not have as many fans as Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal, he has surpassed both of them in terms of titles to top the list.
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Former World No. 1 Yevgeny Kafelnikov has admitted Djokovic as the greatest tennis player in history following his Olympics success. However, he opined that Nole is still not the greatest athlete but he definitely is in the top three. According to Kafelnikov, basketball legend Michael Jordan is the greatest sportsperson, although Djokovic has broken many records and lifted many titles.
"There’s no doubt that Novak is the greatest tennis player of all time, that’s for sure. You can’t put him on the same level as Michael Jordan…I don’t think so, because I grew up idolising the greatest athlete of all time, which was Michael Jordan,” the former Russian tennis player said.
"All I wanted to do was watch him play live. To me, he’s still number one, but Novak is definitely in the top three greatest athletes of all time, without a doubt – all the accomplishments, the records he’s broken, the titles he’s won,” he added.
Don’t know how he can find the motivation to go further – Kafelnikov on Djokovic’s next chapter
Kafelnikov, a two-time singles Grand Slam and four-time doubles Grand Slam champion, is unsure what Djokovic's future holds. The 2000 Sydney gold medalist feels the Serbian has achieved everything and might struggle to find the motivation to go further.
"Novak stayed motivated because he wanted to win the gold medal. Right now, it’s going to be hard to find the motivation. He doesn’t need to prove to anybody that he is better than Federer and Nadal, that’s for sure. What next? I have no idea,” the 50-year-old said.
"If he wants to continue playing for the pure joy of playing, fair enough, nobody will criticise him for that. Again, he has accomplished everything, I don’t know how he can find the motivation to go further than he already has. That’s how I see it,” he added.