Novak Djokovic Wins Roland Garros, Becomes the All-Time GOAT

Novak Djokovic won his 23rd Grand Slam title today, defeating Casper Ruud in the Roland Garros finals. The Serb smashed Ruud in straight sets, 7-6, 6-3, 7-5. Without a doubt, this qualified him for the status of the all-time best in tennis, having left Rafael Nadal with 22 titles behind.

“I’m beyond fortunate to win 23 Grand Slams in my life, it is incredible,” said Djokovic, Roland Garros winner in 2016 and 2021. “I feel I had the power to create my own destiny. I want to say to every young person if you want a better future, you can create it.”

Djokovic started the match slowly, allowing Ruud to break him in the second game of the contest and get the lead. However, the Serb responded in the seventh game, leveling the score, but still not looking confident and ready to play his best tennis.

Novak Djokovic just won the French Open and Nikola Jokic is 1 win away from the NBA championship…

Serbia, a country of just 7 million people, has the best basketball player AND tennis player in the world 🤯🇷🇸 pic.twitter.com/2db89AAC4G

— Guru (@DrGuru_) June 11, 2023

Meanwhile, Ruud was terrorizing the rival with his hard forehands, playing his top tennis. However, as the end of the set approached, we saw him slowing down. As usual, when Novak entered the tiebreak, his rivals lost, and the Serb allowed one point to Ruud, taking the set in his favor.

Novak used Ruud’s mental crisis and recovery from the narrowly lost set to quickly take the second sequence, allowing his rival three games and controlling the situation immediately from the first play.

The third set was a bit tight because it saw 12 games, but in reality, Ruud was always on the back foot, struggling to save his serve while being completely helpless when returning Djokovic’s service.

Plenty of stars were at Philippe Chatrier stadium today. Tom Brady was in Novak’s box, rooting for his friend along with the entire Djokovic family. Zlatan Ibrahimovic brought Kylian Mbappe to watch history, as he and Novak share a long connection which the Serb mentioned in the end. Mike Tyson was also present, Jean Todt, and numerous others.

With 23 Grand Slam titles, Novak became the all-time leader in this category and cemented his legacy as probably the best tennis player ever. Djokovic managed to outlast both Federer and Nadal, keeping his form at the highest possible level even though his age is way past the middle of the fourth decade.

Brady congratulating Djokovic after becoming the oldest French Open singles champion 🐐🤝🐐 pic.twitter.com/GKl5jXSt9s

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) June 11, 2023

The Serbian’s relentless style of play and his mental power are two things that separated him from other players during his playing career. Also, his positive record against Nadal and Roger is another ace in the hands of those who claim that Novak eclipsed all the tennis legends.

Controversial or not, Djokovic made history, and he did it taking a tougher way. Emerging from nowhere and breaking Roger and Rafa’s monopoly, Novak was more than hated by many whose hearts were close to the two other rivals. After that, we saw him being demonized by the media because of his principles, his way of life, and his background, but he withstood all that to eventually come out as the winner.

This won’t be the end for Nole, as his sight is set on another challenge – winning the calendar Grand Slam and the gold medal in the Olympics. The Games will take place in France next year, with the tennis tournament being held at Roland Garros.

Maybe we see more history from Novak in the same place in one year.