The Djoker has the Last Laugh

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic captured his third Wimbledon crown on Sunday.

When World No. 1 Novak Djokovic made the decision to make the necessary sacrifices to elevate himself past main rivals Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer back in 2011, I don't even know if he thought he would be capable of achieving what he has in the last four seasons. He has now managed to separate himself from his all-time great rivals Nadal, Federer and Andy Murray, who are all very capable of being ranked No. 1 in their own right. The roughly 4,000 point lead in the rankings he now holds over No. 2 Federer seems unfathomable in today's game with the amount of quality players residing at the upper echelon of the sport. Djokovic sits at 48-3 this season, with 6 titles and 2 Grand Slams, and we could be very well talking about a possible clean sweep at the majors this season coming up at the U.S. Open if it wasn't for Stan Wawrinka's superb performance in the French Open final against his in-form counterpart. In terms of career achievements, his third Wimbledon triumph gives Djokovic 9 career Grand Slams, moving him ahead of Andre Agassi, Fred Perry, Jimmy Connors, Ivan Lendl and Ken Rosewall. Being in his prime at the age of 28, a stranglehold on the world's top ranking and the seeming lack of any weakness in his game should have Djokovic winning many Grand Slams in the upcoming seasons. 

Djokovic was in serious trouble in his fourth-round encounter with big-serving South African Kevin Anderson, who was playing the match of his life and served over 40 aces for the first time in his career. The Djokovic of six or seven years ago would have caved in the big moments and probably lost the match after having dropped the first two sets in close tiebreaks. The mental difference with him nowadays is his ability to not let his frustrations linger and move on to the next point. Djokovic is a supremely confident athlete and believes he is going to win every match he plays no matter the opponent, conditions or score. That is why he didn't panic and showed little emotion in his comeback until he managed to outwork Anderson and secure the fourth set to send it to a fifth the following day. Finally, and only after he managed to even up the match at two sets all did Djokovic let out a roar and get the crowd pumped up. Djokovic completed the five-set comeback the following day and called it "a very difficult match, one of the most difficult in my Wimbledon career, that's for sure." The type of fight and willingness to go the distance is something that he lacked early on in his career, when he was criticized for wilting in hot conditions and retiring in the middle of matches due to fatigue. Now, there is no one tougher physically and mentally in the world on the tennis court, and every one of his opponents, including Anderson, knows that. Once Djokovic was able to use his grit, superior movement and baseline game to get past Anderson, his next two matches against Marin Cilic and Richard Gasquet were simply a formality. The only question was who was going to be awaiting him in the final?

Federer and Murray battled it out in a blockbuster semi-final for the right to play Djokovic in the Wimbledon final. At times, the level of play was unthinkable, particularly in what seemed like a 50 deuce service game from Murray at 5-6 in the second set. Federer eventually showed why he is a 7-time Wimbledon champion with his superior grass court movement, high-level spot serving and aggressive tactics. Federer had held serve a record 116 games in a row beginning from a tune up tournament in Halle all the way through to the end of his match with Murray. Federer continued his god-like serving against Murray, racking up 20 aces and winning 84% of his first serve points against the second-best returner in the world. Murray acknowledged at the end of the match, "He served fantastic...I didn't really have any opportunities. That puts pressure on you. The pressure builds throughout the set that way." After dispatching Murray in three tight sets, Federer set up the rematch from 2014 in the final with Djokovic. 

The final was tight and tense throughout the first two sets with both men saving set points against one another. The second set tiebreaker was particularly enthralling as Federer saved seven set points in total to even up the contest at a set apiece. That is when Djokovic began to separate himself from the best grass court player of all-time. Federer had been able to keep the points relatively short and used his attacking style in order to split the first two sets, but Djokovic recognized this and was able to counter that by turning the match into a baseline war of attrition. As great as Federer defends and covers the court, no one is at Djokovic's level in this regard. He can stay in points by using his flexibility and athleticism, and does not break down off either his forehand or backhand. Couple that with his underrated serve and him being arguably the best return of server in the history of the sport, and you have a very troubling situation even for the great Roger Federer. Djokovic was able to elevate his game beyond Federer's grasp in the third and fourth sets, taking them routinely 6-4, 6-3. Federer didn't feel defeated after the match and recognized that he got beat by a younger, better player in his rival. The "Djoker" has a real chance to win a hefty number of Grand Slams in the near future and possibly put himself right alongside Nadal (14) and Federer (17) sooner rather than later.