Jim Courier: 'Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal have made Novak Djokovic's record even..'

Competing against Borna Coric in Vienna on Wednesday, Novak Djokovic has the opportunity to match his childhood idol Pete Sampras on a massive record. Sampras is the leader of the pack with six year-end no. 1 seasons, leaving Jimmy Connors, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic on five. Novak needs one more victory to wrap up the current season and confirm his status as the best player in 2020, seeking the sixth year-end no. 1 honor in the last ten years! In 2019, Nadal stole the record from Novak, beating the Serb in the second part of the season to get on the level terms with him and Roger Federer on five year-end no. 1 finishes. Novak has bounced back this year, winning his 17th Major crown at the Australian Open and two Masters 1000 tournaments in Cincinnati and Rome. The Serb took the ATP throne from the Spaniard after Melbourne and he is in an excellent position to overtake Roger Federer's record of 310 weeks as world no. 1 in March next year.

Jim Courier said that Novak Djokovic had to work hard to earn the ranking record.

A former world no. 1 Jim Courier hailed Novak and his achievement, reminding that he achieved that in the era with two greatest possible rivals. Courier has no doubts about Djokovic's reign in 2020 despite the failure at the US Open and Roland Garros, saying he has more dominant seasons if he stays healthy and beat Rafael Nadal, his closest rival at the moment. Novak entered the ATP 500 draw in Vienna for the first time since 2007, seeking 500 clear points and skipping the next week's Paris Masters, with 1000 points safely in his hands from 2019. If he beats Borna Coric on Wednesday, Novak will secure the sixth year-end no. 1 title and continue the quest towards the fifth ATP title of the season, currently standing on four together with Andrey Rublev. 

"When evaluating the all-time greats, there can be a tendency to overvalue singles majors won. Weeks at no. 1 and the year-end number one finishes are also significant aspects of evaluating all-time greats from my perspective. Pete's six consecutive years is incredible and required supreme skill and physical and mental consistency. Novak's ability to carve out his history while playing alongside Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal is every bit as complicated and challenging to comprehend as Pete's six years in a row. I think he can be no. 1 for much longer if he stays focused and healthy. There are only two things that seem likely to prevent him from adding more weeks and years at no. 1: his health and Rafael Nadal. There's no doubt that Novak has been the dominant force in men's tennis again this season; the numbers don't lie," said Jim Courier.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2TxFGYU