“I was inspired by breaking records” Novak Djokovic after 37th Masters 1000 title
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Novak Djokovic
On Sunday, 7th of November, Novak Djokovic rewrote history. Of course, in sports, history is written and rewritten frequently. However, in the current decade, no one has been scripting history as fast as Novak. Novak Djokovic met Daniil Medvedev in the finals of the Rolex Paris Masters 2021, held in Bercy, France. This was a chance for redemption for the Serb, who had been served a shattering defeat by the Russian in the finals of the US Open.
While Djokovic couldn’t realise his dream of becoming the second man in the Open Era to win a calendar slam, a record last achieved by the legendary Rod Laver; he decided not to dwell on it. Having taken a long break post his stint at the Flushing Meadows, the World no. 1 returned to Paris with renewed zest and vigour.
Novak Djokovic: Records galore
In the span of a week, Novak Djokovic went about breaking and making many records. In the second round of the Paris Masters, he defeated Marton Fucsovics of Hungary. With this win, he overtook Roger Federer as the World no. 1 with most wins. While Federer had earlier cemented the spot with 417 wins, Novak now sits with a comfortable 422 wins. In the semifinals, he beat Polish sensation Hubert Hurkacz in three sets. With this, he not only sailed into the finals but also became the year-end world no. 1 for a record 7th time. Until now, with 6 times each, he shared this record with Pete Sampras.
While the finals was a tough battle, with world no. 2 Medvedev looking to repeat the outcome of the US Open final, the 34-year-old Djokovic refused to give up. Despite losing the first set 4-6, he came back swinging and won the next two in a comfortable 6-3 6-3. By winning this match, Djokovic left behind Nadal in the list of most Masters 1000 wins. While they earlier were tied with 36 titles each, now Novak trails ahead with 37. Riding the high of the victory, Djokovic has started his 346th week atop the ATP rankings. He has long since left Roger Federer behind, who spent a total of 310 weeks as world no. 1.
Novak Djokovic’s reaction to his records
While many players claim that they don’t care about records, Novak Djokovic was rather forthcoming about it. In an interview conducted in French, Djokovic’s said that he was always inspired to beat records. “I’ve always been honest enough to say that I was inspired by beating records. The Slams, the Masters 1000 are the one who count the more in tennis”, he said.
He also said that while he’s not in the same age range as the current generation, yet, he is still in good form “I’m not as young as Medvedev and this generation, but I feel well and inspired enough to continue my progression.”
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Aradhana Nayak
(189 Articles Published)