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Novak Djokovic won five titles in 2022, kicking off a season heavily affected by his decision not to get vaccinated against the Coronavirus. The Serbian phenom had to miss the Australian Open and the US Open, two tournaments in which he would have been the top favorite to win.
The former world number 1 did not shine at Roland Garros, where he did not make it past the quarterfinals, but he redeemed himself by triumphing at Wimbledon for the fourth consecutive time. In addition to matching his idol Pete Sampras to seven wins at Church Road, the 35-year-old Belgrade moved one step behind Rafael Nadal in the all-time Grand Slam rankings.
Novak will now test at the 2023 Australian Open, having received the go-ahead from the local government to fly Oceania next month. Goran Ivanisevic's protégé graced his 2022 by also winning the ATP Finals in Turin, the Masters 1000 in Rome, the ATP 500 in Astana and the ATP 250 in Tel Aviv.
In an interview with the Russian website "Championat", Nikolay Davydenko analyzed Djokovic's season in detail. "Novak Djokovic's season was affected by his decision not to get vaccinated against the coronavirus. He had to miss the Australian Open and the US Open, as well as all the US Masters 1000s.
We didn't see the best Djokovic at Roland Garros, while at Wimbledon he was again the player we all know," Davydenko stated. "The seventh title in London gave him confidence and in the second half of the season he was unstoppable.
There are no adjectives left to describe his greatness. If he had also played in Melbourne and New York, it is likely that he would have finished 2022 at the top of the league. ATP classification", confided the Russian. Djokovic has been resting, doing work with his foundation, but also sharing time with his loved ones before returning to the courts to fully immerse himself in the 2023 preseason, a period of the year that has already seen his typical climb to the mountain, it is who became famous for recharging energy for Roland Garros after a difficult year at the time.
Mats Wilander talks about Djokovic
Present in Saudi Arabia, Mats Wilander answered questions from our colleagues at Tennis Italiano. According to the Swede, Novak Djokovic is the big favorite for the Australian Open but there is still a risk.
“I see Nole as the big favourite, ahead of Medvedev, who is at his best on the concrete courts, and Nadal, the defending champion. The only thing that can betray Djokovic is his desire to do too much, to prove, after everything that happened to him in Australia a year ago, that this tournament is his home." With 9 titles in Melbourne, it is certain that the Serb will be the big favorite for the 2023 edition which begins on January 16.