"I'm driven by goals, I know I have to earn it" - With World No. 1 record in the bag, Novak Djokovic looks to the future for more lands to conquer
Novak Djokovic will overtake Steffi Graf for most weeks occupied as the World No. 1 in tennis history on Monday, racking up his 378th week atop the position. Among men, he is at least 68 weeks better than second-ranked Roger Federer on the list.
True to character, however, the 22-time Grand Slam champion is not satisfied and is looking for newer records to break.
Speaking at his pre-tournament press conference ahead of the Dubai Tennis Championships, he admitted that he had never imagined he would one day spend more than seven years as the World No. 1.
At the same time, the Serb made it clear that he is someone who has always been driven by goals, meaning that he is now in search of more achievements to knock down.
"I could not have imagined it at that point, to be honest. I was dreaming as a kid to be Wimbledon champion, to be No. 1 in the world. I achieved those dreams [in] 2011. After that, of course, I wanted more. I still want more achievements," Djokovic said.
"Of course, I'm driven by the goals. I'm as dedicated to the sport really as anybody else. I obviously know that it's not handed to me, that I have to earn it," he added.
Djokovic acknowledged how "surreal" it felt to overtake Steffi Graf in this respect. He praised her as one of the "all-time greats" of the sport and added that he was very proud to find himself among such legendary names.
"Of course, it's surreal in a way to be that many weeks world No. 1, to match Steffi Graf, that is one of the all-time greats of our sport, both men and women. Just being amongst these legendary names is flattering. Of course, I'm very proud of it," he said.
The 22-time Grand Slam champion also spoke about his permission request to the United States government to play in the upcoming Sunshine Double. He revealed that he was yet to receive any updates on the matter.
"In terms of the process in America, no, I have not received anything new comparing to what I said to the media in Belgrade some days ago. Right now it's the same situation," he said.
"Everywhere I go, I want to win" - Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic once again reiterated in the press conference that his main priority are the Grand Slams, stating that those were the tournaments he prepared himself best for.
"I have other priorities, top priorities, which is first of all trying to be healthy and preparing myself in every sense of that word for the tournaments that I'm going to be participating in, particularly building form and trying to peak at the Grand Slams," Djokovic said.
"Those are the tournaments to me that in a way count the most. Of course, the ATP 1000 events where I'm going to play. Those are the goals."
At the same time, the World No. 1 maintained that that did not mean he ignored all other competitions, adding that he tried to win everywhere he went. Now that he is 35, Djokovic opined that any trophy he wins today is worth three to four times as much as those he won back in his younger days.
"But at the same time wherever I play, I don't want to take away the importance of the tournament, whether that be in here in Dubai, 250 event we're playing in Banja Luka in a few months' time," he said.
"Everywhere I go, I want to win. Every trophy I get to win maybe values three, four times as much as some trophies that I won some years ago, 10 years ago, because I know that it's different."