Novak Djokovic ended his long quest for an Olympic gold medal in Paris, adding the only missing accolade to an extraordinary career.
Victory over intergenerational rival Carlos Alcaraz in the final sealed a historic week in the French capital for Djokovic, who appears to have now won everything there is to be won in tennis.
And despite this rivalry still burning strong, another still seems to dominate the headlines – that of the ‘Big Three’ and who deserves the GOAT status in tennis.
Even Alcaraz has weighed in on the discussion of the best player ever, but not many can debate Djokovic’s career in numbers compared to Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.
Steve Johnson claims Novak Djokovic is ‘easiest to play’ out of Big Three
The breathtaking rivalry between Novak Djokovic, Nadal, and Federer dominated men’s tennis for two decades.
Between them, they spent a total of 947 weeks at number one in the ATP rankings and contesting 23 grand slam finals.
There is no doubt that the success of these three individuals can be measured by many different aspects, and former American number one Steve Johnson has now given his verdict on the debate surrounding their differing game styles.
“All three of those guys are completely different,” Johnson said on the ‘Nothing Major’ podcast. “I feel like Roger suffocates you, he takes the complete game out of your hands.
“Rafa, he can just completely bully you around the court, and look, this is obviously a crazy statement, but Novak is the easiest to play of the three because he lets you play tennis – you can get into the rallies.”
Can Djokovic claim a 25th grand slam title this year?
Despite undergoing surgery on a torn meniscus in June, the 37-year-old is still at the top of the game and appears to be in prime condition to go one further than Margaret Court, with whom he is currently tied on 24 major crowns.
The current world number two could do so as early as September when he touches down to defend his title at this year’s US Open.
Djokovic decided to skip the Cincinnati Open this week, where he is also the reigning champion, in a bid to focus his efforts on New York, thus highlighting the significance of his campaign at Flushing Meadows.
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