Novak Djokovic’s GOAT status can solidify itself with a few more Grand Slams taking on the debate from Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal fans, believes Juan Martin del Potro

Juan Martin Del Potro said that for Djokovic to put the GOAT debate to rest, he needs to win more titles.

Novak Djokovic’s GOAT status can solidify itself with a few more Grand Slams taking on the debate from Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal fans, believes Juan Martin del Potro

Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Juan Martin Del Potro (Images via X)

For the world to consider Novak Djokovic the Greatest of All Time (GOAT), he needs to add a few more Grand Slam titles to his trophy cabinet, believes Spanish player Juan Martin Del Potro. Despite having 24 Grand Slam trophies to his name, the tennis fraternity likes to indulge in the GOAT debate.

Roger Federer retired from the sport in 2022, but not before lifting 20 Grand Slam titles. His arch-rival Rafael Nadal has 22 of those coveted trophies, but his return to the sport to fight for more titles is uncertain amidst injury woes. A couple of weeks ago, the Spaniard withdrew from the Indian Wells due to a hip flexor injury.

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For Novak Djokovic, age is just a number, it seems. He seems to be on a mission to bag the Grand Slam titles for fun, one after the other. His last title in a Grand Slam tournament came at the US Open, where the 36-year-old won it for the 24th time. 

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But despite these accolades, some sections of the tennis fraternity don’t want to consider Djokovic the greatest player. Juan Martin Del Potro said that for Djokovic to put the GOAT debate to rest, he needs to win more titles.

Each one was the best in history at different times. In the period from 2006 to 2009, Roger was unbeatable, but if you went to clay there, Rafa was the best… Novak still had a long way to go. He won more titles than them, and it is still being discussed. I believe that if he wins a couple more Grand Slams, there will no longer be a discussion no matter how many fans there are of Roger and Rafa.
Del Potro said during the Miami Open

Novak Djokovic withdraws from the 2024 Miami Open

After losing the Round of 32 match against Luca Nardi in three sets, Novak Djokovic was expected to participate in the Miami Open as well to win his seventh title. But surprisingly, he withdrew from the tournament.

Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic (Image via X)

He took to X to announce that he was struggling to juggle work and family. “At this stage” of his career, he is trying to balance his private and professional schedule, which is why he deemed it best not to participate in Miami. However, he also expressed his hope to play there in the future.

Not participating in Miami means the Serb is on the verge of losing his World No. 1 ranking. If Carlos Alcaraz claims the ‘Sunshine double’, then he would be just 280 points behind Djokovic in the rankings table.

Djokovic has not played in the Miami Open since 2019. Because of US travel restrictions for unvaccinated foreigners, Djokovic wasn’t able to compete here for five years.

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