Rajeev Ram calls Novak Djokovic the ‘Player to Beat’ this year, empathizes with the Serb’s misfortune in the 2022 season
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Rajeev Ram and Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic‘s 2022 season was a clear reflection of why politics needs to be kept out of sports. Starting with his deportation saga from Australia, things got worse as he was denied entry to the USA for Indian Wells and Miami. With the onset of the Ukraine-Russia War, Wimbledon banned Russians and Belarusians from playing. As a result, ATP and WTA deducted all points from the Grand Slam.
Amidst this, Djokovic suffered a big ranking drop as he dropped to the eighth spot in the rankings from the top. While globally things improved with respect to the Pandemic, the USA still held on to its policy of no unvaccinated foreigners coming in. Djokovic missed his second Grand Slam event of the season.
Addressing Djokovic’s plight, former Doubles World No. 1 Rajeev Ram presented his thoughts recently on the matter.
“He’s the player to beat. I’m guessing he has won 8-9 times there. He is so difficult on that surface and everybody will agree that he is the guy to beat there for sure, even if his ranking is not No 1. I don’t think it is really past yet. I honestly believe if Novak was playing in Australia, Wimbledon had points and if he was allowed to play US Open, he would have been the No. 1 ranked player to date.
“He showed his class again in the ATP Tour finals. He played so little last year but still was able to keep such a high ranking. It is getting there (for the young guns) but I don’t think Djokovic is ready to give up just yet,” said Ram speaking with WioNews.
Related: Nick Kyrgios suffers another injury setback as Australian Open campaign takes a big hit
Novak Djokovic trails World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz by exactly 2000 points
Novak Djokovic was fresh from 3 Majors win and one runner-up finish going into the 2022 season. He held 11,540 points sitting at top of the rankings.. Daniil Medvedev was ranked second with 8640 points handing the Serbian great a lead of 2900 points. But with the drama that ensued, he lost many points despite winning the 2022 Wimbledon Championships.
When the rankings were updated after Wimbledon, Medvedev led the rankings. The Russian restarted his reign as World No. 1 with 7775 points while Djokovic was ranked seventh with 4770 points. With his absence from the 2022 US Open, Djokovic lost further 1200 ranking points. He however covered it up with a late resurgence in the post-US Open Tour.
At the start of the 2023 season, Carlos Alcaraz reigns supreme at the Top with 6820 points. Djokovic is currently ranked fifth with 4820 points. Many fans blamed the ATP Tour, US Open, and Wimbledon for poor handling of things. The Serb’s fans were angry as the deficit between Djokovic and Alcaraz is exactly 2000 points, what a winner of a Grand Slam tournament earns.
With the 21-time Grand Slam title winner back at his favorite hunting ground, the rankings could see a changeover when the rankings are updated on 30th January 2023 once the 2023 Australian Open concludes.
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