Novak Djokovic: The wizard of Oz
16-0. Well, if you are wondering what that number is, it is Novak Djokovic’s record in the semi-finals and the finals of the Australian Open. The legendary Serbian has not lost a single match after going past the quarterfinal stage of the first Grand Slam of the year. And on Sunday, Djokovic battled his way from two sets to one down and beat Dominic Thiem 6-4,4-6,2-6,6-3,6-4 to lift a record eighth Australian Open title.
Djokovic has now won 17 Grand Slam titles, and has closed the gap between him and the other two icons of the modern era, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. While Federer leads the all-time list with 20 Grand Slams, Nadal is breathing down his neck with 19. Now, Djokovic has inched closer with 17 Grand Slams to his name.
Each of these legends have one Grand Slam that they own. If Nadal is the king of clay and Federer is the emperor of grass, then Djokovic is the wizard of Oz. Out of the last ten Australian Open tournaments, Djokovic has won seven. It goes on to show the dominance that Djokovic has exhibited over the rest of the circuit at the Australian Open.
In fact, Djokovic too acknowledged that the Australian Open is his favorite Grand Slam.
"This tournament sets a high standard for all the other tournaments around the world and it's definitely my favorite court, my favorite stadium in the world. I’m blessed to hold this trophy once again."
Djokovic will start yet another stint as the World No.1 when the ATP rankings get updated on Monday. The Serbian legend is now tied in the second place along with Roger Federer (8 Wimbledon titles) for winning a single Grand Slam the most number of times (Nadal leads the list with 12 French open titles).
Djokovic is only 32 years old and still has a lot of Grand Slam titles left in him. And surely, the wizard of Oz will continue to put up mind blowing performances at the Australian Open in the years to come.