Tribute to Novak Djokovic

I have not seen any other Tennis player smack the ball so hard with the forehand as Carlos Alcaraz. I have witnessed the three greatest Lawn Tennis players: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic, play during their prime, but none hit with the raw, explosive power of Alcaraz’s whip-like strike. With services consistently over 200 km/hour, monstrous forehand, deceptive drop shots, phenomenal court coverage, and great backhand - I feel that Carlos Alcaraz is probably playing at a higher level than any of the three greatest players of Lawn Tennis I have seen. However, one of the three greats, who is the only one currently playing of the three, had an unfinished agenda. Even though he won everything else, he had yet to win the Olympic Gold.

Novak Djokovic holds the world record for the highest number of Grand Slam singles titles held by any man. He is the record holder for the longest time as World Number 1. He won more ATP Finals and more ATP Masters than anyone else. He is regarded as the greatest Lawn Tennis player of all time. But he had never won the Olympic Gold. The one haunting absence; the one glory that refused to be captured.

Novak Djokovic is in the 2024 Olympic Men’s Singles Final. Across the net stands Alcaraz, a rival 16 years his junior at the peak of human athletic prowess. The veteran of 37 is fresh from a knee injury. The stakes? Eternal glory of winning all top Tennis titles or the greatest Lawn Tennis player but with no Olympic Gold.

What followed wasn’t just victory; it was transcendence. He played as if it were a matter of life and death. It felt like he was sprinting across the net as if on the edge of a cliff—life, legacy, everything on the line. He toppled the future and became timeless.

Novak Djokovic didn’t just win Olympic gold. He completed his career achievements. Already the statistical GOAT, already the conqueror of the Federer-Nadal era—he didn’t merely win yesterday, he won against a generational hurricane, with the weight of destiny on his shoulders. He ascended. He became the God of Lawn Tennis.

Congratulations, Novak. Stay just a little longer. The game will be poorer without you.