By now, Novak Djokovic’s Calendar Grand Slam miss is old news. Rod Laver’s 52-year-old record and Steffi Graf’s Golden Slam remain unbroken.
Earlier this year, I wrote a post titled “Tennis Top 25 Players Aged 25 or Under,” in which I projected that Medvedev had four realistic shots at winning a Grand Slam title before his 26th birthday. That included the French Open, Wimbledon, US Open, and Australian Open 2022.
Denying Djokovic his Grand Slam was not on the cards!
I would like to have seen Djokovic win the Tennis Grand Slam.
I like Novak Djokovic, the tennis professional.
Unlike many, I am unfazed by Djokovic’s emotional intensity on the court. I believe it is his self-motivation tactic. His off-court actions and personal beliefs are not for me to judge. Celebrity tennis players are people too. Sometimes, emotions get the better of them.
It would be redundant to say that Djokovic is one of the greatest tennis players of all time. Daniil Medvedev said it right after he won the US Open title.
Watching the US Open matches on TV, I cheered Djokovic on, in his quest for the Grand Slam. Most people I watched the matches with did not necessarily share my sentiment. It was evident that many did not want Djokovic to win the Grand Slam.
The reasons were varied.
Some hated his “attitude and arrogance.” A few disapproved of his stance on COVID vaccinations. Some people did not want Djokovic to outperform Federer and Nadal. One person pointed out that he had hit a line judge with the ball. When I mentioned that it was unintentional, all I got was a “Still!’
There was nary a discussion on what a new Calendar Grand Slam champion would mean for the game of tennis.
There are not many unbroken records that go back 50 years. Yet, most write-ups on hard-to-break sports records do not feature the tennis Calendar Grand Slam. It makes you wonder if sportswriters believe that achieving the Grand Slam of tennis is not comparable to Usain Bolt’s 9.58-second 100-metre dash or Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point NBA game.
Irrespective of the difficulty level, the question remains: Is Novak Djokovic’s Calendar Grand Slam miss good or bad for tennis?
For perspective, here are some numbers.
According to an analysis that appeared in the Sports Journal, the higher-seeded men averaged a 78.9% success rate during the seasons spanning 2006-2019. The upset rate stood at 21.1%. Medvedev’s win was by no means an easy feat!
The numbers speak for themselves. Simply put, winning the Grand Slam of tennis is not easy. Even Serena Williams, with 23 majors to her credit, has not strung together four consecutive wins within a calendar year.
In my view, Djokovic’s Grand Slam miss goes beyond a personal shortfall. It is a lost opportunity for the tennis community to rewrite history books. The perception of attainability is vital to keep the crop of younger players motivated for more than a single major tournament win.
Records should be broken. Fifty years is a long time!
At 34, Djokovic’s chances of making another run at the Grand Slam appear slim. The competition is stiff. It’s only a matter of time before the ATP starts looking more like the WTA, where there have been 22 Grand Slam winners over the past ten years versus just 8 in the ATP.
With the dominance of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal fading, the younger players are champing at the bit to displace the old guard. They certainly have timing on their side. Their chances of winning at least one Grand Slam tournament are way higher than those who came ten years ahead of them.
Will one of them ever win a Calendar Grand Slam?
Let’s hope so. It’s good for the game!
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