The 34-year-old will be hoping to add to his achievements in the remaining years of his career as he vies with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer to be declared the best of tennis’s ‘big three’.
The Serbian has racked up 20 Grand Slam wins and is the only player to have won each of the ATP’s elite tournaments (Masters series events, ATP Tour finals and Grand Slams).
He also holds the record for achieving the year end number one ranking on seven occasions.
Serbian Loves the Grand Stage
Djokovic turned pro in 2003 – the same year that one of his great rivals, Federer, was to win Wimbledon for the first time.
He made his first Grand Slam appearance at the 2005 Australian Open – suffering a first round exit – but it was at Melbourne three years later that the Serbian was to taste Grand Slam success for the first time, defeating Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the final.
The Serbian was just 20-years-old at the time of the 2008 Australian Open but it took a while for him to achieve the consistency which followed later in his career.
His next Grand Slam triumph came at the 2011 Australian Open when he defeated Andy Murray in the final.
And it was that moment which seemed to mark a turning point in his career from being a hugely talented contender to a serial winner.
The Serbian went on to enjoy a stellar year in 2011, enjoying his maiden successes at Wimbledon and the US Open, and hoovering up a record-breaking five Masters Series titles to set a new record for the most prize money won ($12million) in a single season.
Djokovic began a period of dominance at Wimbledon, winning the title three times between 2011 and 2015, and became the French Open champion in 2016.
It was Djokovic’s first triumph at Roland Garros and meant that he had become the first person in history to hold all four major titles at the same time.
There was a two-year gap to the next Grand Slam triumph as Djokovic battled to recover from elbow surgery and adjusted to a new coaching setup, but, despite turning 30 in May 2017, some of his best years were still to come.
Eight of Djokovic’s 20 Grand Slam wins have come in his thirties, including three more Wimbledon titles, a second French Open, three more Australian Open titles and a third US Open triumph.
One of the Greats
Looking back at Djokovic’s achievements he has undoubted claims to be the greatest player of all time although much will depend on how he and his great rivals, Federer and Nadal, fare in the years ahead.
Nadal moved one ahead of Djokovic and Federer’s Grand slam tallies (20 each) with his 21st Grand Slam triumph at this year’s Australian Open.
However, Djokovic was by far the most consistent of the three in 2021 and remains hopeful enjoying some more magical moments.
He is the most successful player in Australian Open history with nine wins and is fourth on the Wimbledon honours list with six titles, two fewer than Federer and one less than Pete Sampras and William Renshaw.