Despite being overshadowed by Fedal through out his career and reached to his peak level a lit bit late I think Novak can break so many important records. He looks physically fine and most importantly he has no REAL RİVALS. Fedal is finished. Who is going to be his main rival ??? Murray ?? I dont hold my breath for that. Since there is no champion quality player in the young generation so far ı can see Novak dominating game at least 4 or 5 years more and breaking so many records.I think he has a fair shot to break so many important records.
Novak can break so many important Records.
- Thread starter mistik
- Start date
Obviously nobody knows what will happen, but Djokovic (if he is clever, and he seems to be) must know that Federer and Nadal time winning majors are (virtually) over, and that current younger generations are, possibly, the worse ever (for whatever reasons).
If he stays healthy and fresh and hungry, he has a fantastic chance to win several majors still, during the following 2 or 3 years.
Murray too, by the way, if he also stays healthy and motivated.
Djokovic seem to have known the best option for him was to outlast Fedal, and that he has done....
If he stays healthy and fresh and hungry, he has a fantastic chance to win several majors still, during the following 2 or 3 years.
Murray too, by the way, if he also stays healthy and motivated.
Djokovic seem to have known the best option for him was to outlast Fedal, and that he has done....
Sir Percival Blakeney
Professional
He could be just that, or something like an upgraded version of Agassi (who won 5 slams after he turned 29).
veroniquem
Bionic Poster
Why not? I think Murray is going to be his main rival overall this season. Fed is aging, Nadal is weakening, youngsters like KG are not quite ready to take over, Berd does not have the mental. Murray looks solid. Maybe his time to shine or at least try.
Maybe.
Agassi really benefited a lot. When he was back in full force, around 1999, he knew that most of all those great players from that great generation (Courier, Becker, Edberg, Muster, Stich, Bruguera, Ivanisevic, Chang, Krajicek, Korda....) were retired, semi-retired, or just plain sucking at that time.
Only a Sampras (who was gradually becoming weaker and weaker) and Rafter (of that age-group) were still competitive, and the next generation of Moya, Kafelnikov, Corretja, Rios, Enqvist, Bjorkman, Rusedski, Costa, Johansson, Schuetler...thought good/very good players, were not at the same level of his own (Agassi's) generation.
Agassi basically took advantage of that to win several more AusOpens and to still be competitive well into the Federer, Roddick, Ferrero, Hewitt, Coria, Nalbandian, Safin....era, players that were 10-11 years younger than him.
Maybe Djokovic can reign until a new generation of players 10-12 years younger than him comes up.
Charlemagne
Hall of Fame
Calm down with the Djokovic hysteria... He's been brilliant this year and last, but he's almost 28, and plays a physical style. Most players experience a substantial drop off in performance around 29/30, and I don't think Novak will be an exception. Hell, Federer went from winning 2-3 slams a year, to only winning 2 in the last 5 years.
Enough already. Let him win the FO first and then the hysteria can begin.His days are also numbered. His game is almost as physical as Nadal's, and his decline will be just as sharp and surprising.
If he does not get injured (which will accelerate the decline), watch his return stats. As his sight and explosiveness deteriorate, his GOAT return will be the first to go.
If he does not get injured (which will accelerate the decline), watch his return stats. As his sight and explosiveness deteriorate, his GOAT return will be the first to go.
cc0509
Talk Tennis Guru
A five year projection is ridiculous. It never works out how you think it will in pro sports. There are always changes and surprises.
swordtennis
G.O.A.T.
no need to get ahead of ourselves here. That being said I think Murray and Djokovic will be a gradual decline. They are strong physically much more flexible than Agassi and for the most part durable. They tended towards slower development as well. I say not until 30 there will be a noticeable drop off.
Djokovic2011
Bionic Poster
As cc0 would say, let's just wait and see what happens. :smile:
90's Clay
Banned
Well kind of.. We haven't had many surprises these past dozen years though in tennis.. So until others guy step up and become consistent players outside the top 3-4 guys, Nole will continue to have his way.. Unless Nadal gets a resurgence.
Problem is you can have guys like a Wawrinka or Cilic catch fire for maybe a few weeks but then totally disappear off the radar.
cc0509
Talk Tennis Guru
He's almost 28. Historically, this is when the decline usually starts. It all depends on how Djokovic manages it.
chjtennis
G.O.A.T.
Father time.
90's Clay
Banned
Hes only like 27 isn't he? He has a good 4-5 years left barring injury
cc0509
Talk Tennis Guru
People need to chill a little bit. I know it looks like Nadal will never come back from the dead but I am still not buying that Brooklyn bridge and Murray looks like he is working hard to get back into his winning ways again. Federer is old but he is fairly competitive with Djokovic. We don't know what is going to happen with the younger guys who seem hopeless right now. At some point one or two of those younger guys will make something happen. Predicting what will happen next week is hard enough but predicting that Djokovic will be dominating in five years time is foolish IMO.
Look at past threads on this forum, i.e. the Djokovic is done threads from
2013 or all of the Murray is done threads after his back surgery. Or how about the 300 Federer is done threads since 2008. It didn't quite happen the way we thought did it?
chjtennis
G.O.A.T.
You never know. He's turning 28 this year. Just because players like Roswell, Connors, Agassi and Federer played/are playing well in their mid-30s, a lot of people think everyone can do that a well. That's not right. Some players retire 28-30 because they can't sustain their level. After 28, you never know when a player will face a steep down hill. He will not be as good in 2016, believe me.
Agree.
People that say this know very little about tennis or sports in general for this matter. They couldn't be more different. Despite both being good at D thus they win long rallies, they achieve their victories in different ways. I used a boxing reference early in the year to compare the two but I'm too lazy to type it again.
Also, Djokovic is lucky to have being able to avoid 'unlucky' injuries, YES, but Nadal's injuries aren't a case of 'luck' or lack of it. He puts his body at the limit almost every time he plays in order to win. He also vultured 250s and 500s for his whole career. And it showed each year. Nadal's body would fold every year after the US Open. Like a swiss clock. Djokovic only gets better at the end of the Season.
Which is also caused by his great scheduling. Last year 33yo Fed played more tournaments than Djokovic ffs.
Are you saying his reaction time will get worse with age? Obviously. It goes like this for everyone. But that's the beauty of being an aggressive returner. If he moves 60cm(20in I think) back he will still be in an aggressive court position while turning irrelevant the half split second he may have lost. IF you try to elaborate on this then my answer is: string tension, racquet balance and swing-weight. He can mess with these 3 elements to maintain his return at a high level.
Anyways, you saying his return will be the first to go already cemented what I think about your tennis knowledge.
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People keep making this mistake. Tennis changed, people. With courts being slowed down and racquet and string technology revolution, tennis is not a game of youngsters anymore. It's not a 100m race. It's a game of 1500m runners.
I'll post this again:
chjtennis
G.O.A.T.
People keep making this mistake. Tennis changed, people. With courts being slowed down and racquet and string technology revolution, tennis is not a game of youngsters anymore. It's not a 100m race. It's a game of 1500m runners.
I'll post this again:
There's no way to decide which theory is right until we actually wait and see what happens in the future.
People who resort to personal attacks are not the ones whose opinions I tend to value.
They both run a lot, exert a lot of energy and play long, grueling, physically-demanding rallies. Their success depends a lot on being young, fast and strong, regardless of any "different ways" (or your boxing reference that I am too lazy to search for).
What I am saying is that the serve return, an element that demands quick reaction, acute sight and physical explosiveness, is likely to betray him first compared to, say, his serve. I recommend watching his serve returns to look for the first signs of decline, which (as far as slam-winning is concerned) typically starts around 28 and gets unnoticed at first.
SpinToWin
Talk Tennis Guru
To comment on the "Novak puts less stress in his body than Nadal" debate...
Yes and no.
Nadal does put significantly more strain on his body with his normal groundstrokes, particularly on his knees, whereas Djokovic's technique is less hard on the body.
However, some of Djokovic's signature shots will inevitably go with time. What I am referring to is his flexibility. Flexibility is something you lose with age and Djokovic uses it more than anybody else I have seen on the pro tour, be it on the return or when stretched wide. When his flexibility inevitably deteriorates with age, the likelihood of a injury occurring on one of his extreme stretches increases exponentially. Unfortunately, such injuries tend to be rather severe. I hope this does not happen to him, but keep in mind that he too puts a lot of stress on his body with a few of his shots and that an aged body can collapse under that.
Yes and no.
Nadal does put significantly more strain on his body with his normal groundstrokes, particularly on his knees, whereas Djokovic's technique is less hard on the body.
However, some of Djokovic's signature shots will inevitably go with time. What I am referring to is his flexibility. Flexibility is something you lose with age and Djokovic uses it more than anybody else I have seen on the pro tour, be it on the return or when stretched wide. When his flexibility inevitably deteriorates with age, the likelihood of a injury occurring on one of his extreme stretches increases exponentially. Unfortunately, such injuries tend to be rather severe. I hope this does not happen to him, but keep in mind that he too puts a lot of stress on his body with a few of his shots and that an aged body can collapse under that.
Yeah, he has come a long way. I mean who saw that coming in 2009 or 2010?
I always thought Novak would be just another Safin. I think most people did.
Novak declined a bit in his prime by experimenting with his serve and his racket and with fitness. So, it looked downhill from there.
But, still I don't have faith that Novak will come close to goat standards. I expect him to have Lendl like career.
vanioMan
Legend
True and false.
Nadal's first and foremost injury is due to bad luck. I'm talking about the foot problem. That's where the knee problems come from (not only, but it's a big part). The root of many of Rafa's injuries is that foot problem = unlucky.
D
Deleted member 716271
Guest
He can't catch Federer but he could catch Nadal, although depends if Rafa is truly finished or not.
What he could do is get to a level of accomplishments where we see Fed, Rafa, and Novak as 3 all time greats who all brought something special and unique to the game and at their best could hang with eachother.
Federer would be at the top of that triumvirate, but it wouldn't be wrong to group them together as competitive and in the same league in that sense of level of play.
Novak does need to finish with the CYGS and at least 12 slams to be an all time legend imo which I think he will do.
What he could do is get to a level of accomplishments where we see Fed, Rafa, and Novak as 3 all time greats who all brought something special and unique to the game and at their best could hang with eachother.
Federer would be at the top of that triumvirate, but it wouldn't be wrong to group them together as competitive and in the same league in that sense of level of play.
Novak does need to finish with the CYGS and at least 12 slams to be an all time legend imo which I think he will do.
Marty Cintron
Semi-Pro
I thought the title was "Novak can break so many racquets", I confused with Dimitrov.
Marty Cintron
Semi-Pro
In complete disagreement with this, bro.
There is a suppleness in Djokovic's game which Nadal's is lacking. Indeed, can someone remind me the last time Djokovic has been seriously injured (I mean, an injury which saw him out of action for numerous weeks)?
Chanwan
G.O.A.T.
Don't think the flexibility will go out the window. It would if we were talking about middle aged men here, but I think he could keep his flexibility at or extremely close to its current level with stretching exercises which I'm sure he makes plenty of.
D
Deleted member 716271
Guest
I think Janowicz is right regarding age.
In this athletic endurance, strength, and gladiatorial game we are going to see player's athletic abilities peak at the same age they do in other sports--26 to 29...Nadal is obviously an exception with all the mileage he has.
Also Djokovic and to a lesser extent Murray strike me as more fit than Rafa...Rafa is simply a genetic beast and a warrior...rarely if ever seems tired in long matches...but that is different from his overall fitness and wear and tear which seems more pronounced than Djoker
In this athletic endurance, strength, and gladiatorial game we are going to see player's athletic abilities peak at the same age they do in other sports--26 to 29...Nadal is obviously an exception with all the mileage he has.
Also Djokovic and to a lesser extent Murray strike me as more fit than Rafa...Rafa is simply a genetic beast and a warrior...rarely if ever seems tired in long matches...but that is different from his overall fitness and wear and tear which seems more pronounced than Djoker
chjtennis
G.O.A.T.
There was a time Rafa was seen as one of the fittest guys ever, and Djokovic and Murray were seen as talented but unfit. How time changes things.
Charlemagne
Hall of Fame
People keep making this mistake. Tennis changed, people. With courts being slowed down and racquet and string technology revolution, tennis is not a game of youngsters anymore. It's not a 100m race. It's a game of 1500m runners.
I'll post this again:
It's hard to see it looking forward and in the present because Novak is playing so well, but believe me, he will face a steep decline in performance- it's just part of life. Given his style of game, I think that half a step loss is more damaging to his game than say a Federer. I just think there is a lot of hysteria about him, which I understand, but we've seen this happen so many times over the years. After 2010 AO, ppl predicted Federer would have 20 GS, since then, he's only won 1 major... Look at Mats Wilander after a dominant 1988... Hard to see in the present, I understand.
Earnest One
Semi-Pro
Injury. I worry about him twisting an ankle. What he does on hard courts is almost miraculous. But sooner or later, an ankle is going to fold over and he will be toast. Him and Clisters--amazing stretching and sliding capabilities on hard courts. Nothing close to the two of them that I can recall.
V
VexlanderPrime
Guest
If Murray improves even a hair from where he is right now he will wi. Another slam or two. Having a great 2015
If you look at the guys who remained excellent (i.e. top 5) players into their early-to-mid 30s - Connors, Agassi, Federer, Lendl to a lesser degree - all of them were/are excellent returners and tended to play a baseline-oriented game. Djokovic (and Murray) has a style of play that may enable him to remain a top level player into his early-to-mid 30s much like some of his relatively similar-playing predecessors.
wangs78
Legend
Nole will eventually succumb to the younger players gunning for him. I just hope that between Dimitrov, Raonic, Nishikoria and even younger ones like Krygios, that they keep working hard because they are hitting their prime just as Djokovic is edging past his physical peak. Worst thing that could happen is if these youngsters push themselves too hard and succumb to injuries like Del Potro has (although I'm not saying Delpo hurt himself working too hard, but he clearly seems to be out of the running for the time being with all those wrist problems).
Airspun
Hall of Fame
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