By Bill Simons
He’s not adored by the masses, who delight in Federer and Nadal. But Novak Djokovic’s play, of late, have been unrivaled.
What a season he had. His 2015 record was 82-6. He got married, had a son, reached the finals of all four Slams, and won three of them, as well as a record seven Masters and the ATP World Tour Finals. He stated the obvious, “This has been the best year of my life…It’s been as close to perfection as it can get.”
The Serb has won ten career Slams and is considered the greatest player in the greatest generation. His play is a new template. He’s lifted tennis to a new level. He may soon sashay into the “Greatest of All Time” debate. In the meantime, his speed, defense, flexibility, professionalism, strength and will have dominated top 10 opponents. It’s not just that Novak is the master of the mid-length rally. As Justin Gimelstob explained, with Novak, “It just gets to a point where you don’t know what the answer is. If you are too aggressive, you incur too much risk. If you are too defensive, he takes control.”
At last comfortable in his own skin, Djokovic has been No. 1 for 18 months. Fit and confident, he was clutch at crunch time. His only flaws, an indifferent overhead and, oh yes, a failure to win the French Open and an Olympic medal. Oh well, he did pocket $21 million in court earnings and left many to calculate whether his 2015 was the best season in tennis history.
