Novak Djokovic's 3 most dominant seasons
With every win of his, Novak Djokovic leaves little room for the argument surrounding the greatest player of all-time. He recently captured his 24th Major title by winning the US Open.
The Serb equalled Margaret Court's longstanding record and is poised to even surpass that tally given his form. He's close to achieving a whopping 400 weeks as the World No. 1 as well.
Though the path to glory was full of obstacles, Djokovic rose to the occasion time and time again to prove himself as the best. His results convey it all, with the 36-year old asserting himself as the numero uno in every possible metric.
Djokovic has worked hard to cement his position as a legend. However, looking back at his career, three seasons stand apart from the rest based on his performances.
Here's a look at those seasons in which Djokovic's dominance rose to new levels:
#3) 2016 - Novak Djokovic finally completes the Career Grand Slam
It would've been very difficult to match what he achieved the previous year, but Djokovic came quite close to doing so in 2016. He started the season by claiming his 11th Major title at the Australian Open, which was also his third consecutive Grand Slam title.
By the time the French Open rolled out, the Serb found himself under immense pressure. Not only was he trying to capture his first ever title in Paris, he was also gunning for a non-Calendar Year Grand Slam and a career Grand Slam. He had also finished as the runner-up thrice at the venue.
Djokovic overcame his past demons to lay his hands on the winner's trophy for the first time at the French Open. He defeated Andy Murray in four sets to do so and became the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to hold all four Major titles simultaneously.
The feat was dubbed as the "Nole Slam". Djokovic tasted his first loss at a Major when he was stunned in the third round of Wimbledon by Sam Querrey. He then finished as the runner-up at the US Open as well.
Earlier in the season he won the Indian Wells and Miami Masters to complete the "Sunshine Double" for the fourth time in his career. He also won the Qatar Open, the Madrid Open and the Canadian Open.
Murray caught fire towards the end of the season and denied Djokovic a chance at winning the ATP Finals. The Serb lost to his rival in the final and conceded the year-end No. 1 ranking to him as well.
Overall, the Serb concluded the season with a 88% winning record, with seven titles and three-runner-up finishes. While he's had comparable success during other seasons as well, 2016 is memorable because he finally emerged victorious at the French Open.
#2) 2011 - The start of Novak Djokovic's dominance
Expectations were high from Djokovic after his maiden Major triumph at the 2008 Australian Open. While he did have considerable success over the next couple of years, it still felt like he wasn't living up to his potential. That all changed in 2011 when he scripted his name in the record books.
Djokovic annihilated his opponents right from the start of the season. He compiled a 41-match winning streak, which came to an end in the semifinals of the French Open against Roger Federer.
During this time, the Serb won his second Major title at the Australian Open, along with titles in Dubai, Indian Wells, Miami, Belgrade, Madrid and Rome. Following his defeat in Paris, he went on to win his third Major title and first at Wimbledon and ascended to the top of the rankings for the first time.
Djokovic won the Canadian Open after that, but lost to Murray in the Cincinnati final. At the US Open, he saved a couple of match points in the semifinals against Federer and proceeded to defeat Nadal in the final to claim his third Major crown of the year.
It would be the Serb's last title of the season. After so many highs throughout the year, he couldn't end the season in an emphatic manner. He crashed out in the group stage of the ATP Finals.
Nevertheless, Djokovic had an impressive 92% (70-6) winning record and won 10 titles. He went 10-1 combined against Nadal and Federer, and defeated the former six times, that too, in finals. The 2011 season heralded the beginning of the dominance that one would associate with the Serb.
#1) 2015 - The year when Novak Djokovic cemented himself as a legend
Players would consider themselves incredibly lucky and blessed to have a season like Djokovic did in 2011. To surpass it just a few years later would be quite otherworldly, but the Serb manage to do that.
Djokovic nabbed three Grand Slam titles during the year, with only the French Open slipping out of his grasp. He won the first set in the final against Stan Wawrinka, but lost the match in four sets.
Aside from the Madrid Open, in which he didn't participate, Djokovic made it to the final of the remaining eight Masters tournaments. He won six of them and lost to Murray and Federer in the finals of Montreal and Cincinnati respectively.
The Serb concluded the year by winning the ATP Finals. His record-breaking season included plenty of highlights. He reigned as the No. 1 player for the entire year, made it to 15 consecutive finals and earned a record amount of prize money in a single season.
Djokovic also went 15-4 against his main rivals, Federer, Nadal and Murray. The Spaniard was the only one who didnt win a match against him. Overall, he had a 93% (82-6) winning record this season and won 11 titles from 15 finals, while contesting 16 tournaments all year.
Records are meant to be broken, but it's very unlikely that someone will come close to achieving what Djokovic did in 2015.