Novak Djokovic (Photo : Reuters File)
Novak Djokovic is chasing greatness, and he won Wimbledon 2015 in dramatic fashion-beating the legend he is chasing.
Roger Federer has 17 Grand Slam titles which is the current record. While this is already a legendary feat, most observers thought Federer was not done. His duel with Rafael Nadal, himself with 14 Grand Slams of his own, defined the recent era of tennis and it didn't seem it would end in the near future.
But there seems to be a new era brought in by an adversary who rose to the top by beating both of them: Novak Djokovic.
Why would we even discuss Djokovic's greatness among these two tennis icons when he only has 9 Grand Slam titles?
On his third Wimbledon win this year, The Guardian recalls how Serb dominated the Swiss all-time Grand Slam leader: "he broke down Roger Federer's serve with the depth and ferocity of his returns a nd whenever he was in trouble on his own serve, he always found a way. It was a bit anti-climactic in the end."
Perhaps the best testament of Djokovic's greatness is how he stacks up against the best. The tally by Tennis World USA show Federer and Djokovic have faced each other 39 times in their career and Federer leads by a hair -- 20-19; Nadal and Djokovic have 43 matches and the Spaniard Nadal is leading -- 23-20.
But the trends are about to change. Federer is 33 years old, and is in awe of his new rival who seems to have gotten his number. He also notes that Djokovic has "a ton of Masters 1000 titles, which not many people talk about, which I find extraordinary."
But it's not just players in his era. Andre Agassi, considered the world's best returner, has conferred that Djokovic is one of the greatest in that skill.
In 2015, Djokovic has been virtually unbeatable taking two of three Grand Slam titles so far, losing to Stan Wawrinka in the French Open but beating Federer twice.
Being five years younger than Federer, he still has many chances to reach his record. It may seem like Federer cannot stop the younger talent himself. If the trend in 2015 continues, perhaps no one would.
