"If it goes on 2-3 years, Novak Djokovic runs the risk of not only overtaking but even overwhelming Roger Federer & Rafael Nadal"- Tennis commentator
Tennis commentator Guido Monaco believes Novak Djokovic is on course to not only "overtake" Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in the GOAT debate but even "overwhelm" them in the next 2-3 years, assuming he continues in the same vein.
2023 has seen the Serb win three Grand Slams (Australian Open, French Open, US Open) and two Masters 1000 trophies (Cincinnati and Paris), taking his tally up to 24 and 40 respectively. Djokovic now holds the records for the most Slams in the Open Era, as well as the most Masters 1000 titles in ATP history.
Speaking on the latest episode of TennisMania, Monaco, who commentates on Eurosport, said that while there are other components to tennis like elegance and class, priority in the GOAT debate should be given to results.
He believes that Novak Djokovic, with all the records to his name coupled with a better head-to-head record against both Nadal (30-29) and Federer (27-23), deserves to be considered their superior.
"It's easy to say that sporting results aren't everything. Of course, there is also elegance, behavior, the example you can give, how much charity you do, what image you give of the athlete, how much you have done for tennis and much more, but sports titles are those for which these phenomena are they [second to]," Guido Monaco said, as quoted by OASport.
"We must give due weight to these results. If it goes on like this for 2-3 years, he runs the risk of not only overtaking but even overwhelming [Roger] Federer and [Rafael] Nadal."
Monaco also spoke about the World No. 1's arrival on the scene, claiming that he has always had the fire to prove himself better than the other two because they were already idols when he started rising up the ranks.
"[Novak Djokovic] has this thing inside that he always had to prove more than the others, because he arrived later and the others were already idols. He has a different story, he comes from another place in the world. You always have to put yourself in other people's shoes," Monaco said.
"There is no longer any doubt that on a sporting level that Novak Djokovic is the greatest of all time" - Guido Monaco
Guido Monaco added that Novak Djokovic is looking to put so much space between himself and Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal that even the most ardent fans of the pair would have to accept the Serb is the greatest of all time.
Personally, Monaco has no doubts, as he believes that purely on a sporting level, the 24-time Grand Slam champion has closed the GOAT debate in his favor.
"He has an ability to find motivation from many things and, despite having completed the comeback by overtaking his rivals, he wants to put even more space between himself and them to convince even the most reticent admirers of Federer and Nadal that he is the strongest."
"Some will never admit it and they won't be able to get everyone to agree, but in my opinion there is no longer any doubt that on a sporting level that Novak Djokovic is the greatest of all time," Monaco said.