Serbian tennis legend Novak Djokovic remains deeply connected to the annals of tennis history as he strives to be the first man in 16 years to successfully defend his US Open title. Djokovic, who recently celebrated his Olympic victory in Paris, is eyeing several records at Flushing Meadows, where he will begin his quest against Moldovan qualifier Radu Albot on Monday night. At 37, he has the chance to align himself with Jimmy Connors, Pete Sampras, and Roger Federer as the oldest champions of the Open era, and with a 25th Grand Slam title, he would hold the outright record for the most ever, currently shared with Australian legend Margaret Court.
Djokovic would also be the first man to win consecutive US Opens since Federer achieved five in a row from 2004 to 2008. "I didn't know about that," Djokovic admitted. "I knew it was probably the case for five, 10 years, but I didn't know it was that long." He hopes this year will mark a change, stating, "That's the goal." A win would extend his streak of years with at least one Grand Slam title to seven, having only missed out in 2017 from 2011 to 2023.
In 2024, the majors have seen a shift to a new generation, with Spain's Carlos Alcaraz pursuing his third consecutive Grand Slam after victories at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, and Italian Jannik Sinner, who won the Australian Open and surpassed Djokovic in the world rankings. With Federer retired and Rafael Nadal dealing with injuries, Djokovic finds motivation in his emerging rivalries with players like Alcaraz and Sinner.
"These kind of rivalries that I have with Jannik and Carlos are the kind of matchups that still bring that joy of competition to me and inspire me to really push myself to perfect the game," Djokovic explained. "People ask me 'now that you have basically won everything with the golden medal, what else is there to win?'" He remains driven, competitive, and eager to make more history and enjoy his time on the tour.
Djokovic described the medal ceremony after his triumph in Paris as "probably the most intense emotions I have ever had on a tennis court." Despite this, he does not foresee any decline in his performance as he aims to conclude the season with another Grand Slam title. "Grand Slams are the pillars of our sport," Djokovic emphasized. "They are the most important historical tennis events that we have. So if you don't get pumped and inspired to play your best tennis at Grand Slams, it's hard to do that anywhere else."
