‘Novak Djokovic winning the Golden Slam in 2024 would be surprising’, says leading analyst
Alex Corretja thinks it would be “a little bit surprising” if Novak Djokovic won the Golden Slam in 2024 because “it’s normal that he is getting older and the recovery is not the same.”
The two-time French Open finalist stressed that he is “sure” Djokovic will continue winning Grand Slam titles but said it is going to be “tougher and tougher” for the legendary Serb.
During a stunning 2023 season, Djokovic won three of the four Grand Slam tournaments – the fourth time he achieved this following stellar campaigns in 2011, 2015 and 2021.
In 2021, Djokovic won the first three Majors of the year in a historic run, but missed out on a medal at the Tokyo Olympics, before losing the US Open final to fall one win short of a Calendar Grand Slam.
The 36-year-old will have another opportunity to complete a Golden Slam (winning all four Majors and an Olympic gold medal in a season) next year – with 2024 an Olympic year.
After winning the 2023 ATP Finals, the world No 1 mentioned the possibility of a Golden Slam when asked if it is possible to improve on this year.
“Well, you can win four Slams and Olympic gold (smiling). Let’s see. I mean, I have always the highest ambitions and goals. That’s not going to be different for the next year, that’s for sure,” the Serbian said to reporters.
No male player has achieved a Golden Slam – with tennis legend Steffi Graf the only woman to accomplish the staggering feat in her amazing 1988 campaign.
Former world No 2 Corretja, a respected analyst and commentator, assessed the prospect of Djokovic achieving the historic feat in 2024.
“I think that would be a little bit surprising (winning a Golden Slam) because even if he improves his game so much, he’s getting older. It’s normal that he is getting older and the recovery is not the same,” the Spaniard told Eurosport.
“But at the same time, he’s got the experience and he’s just focused on the important tournaments and the ones that he feels are going to make a difference in his life.
“I’m sure that he’s going to keep on winning Slams, but it’s going to be tougher and tougher and he knows that. And in a way, I feel the match that he lost against [Jannik] Sinner in the Davis Cup might be good for him.
“It’s a wake-up call to say, ‘okay, I’m doing unbelievably, but I can’t relax for one second because some of the guys behind me, are going to push me so much. They’re very dangerous and they know they can beat me now.’”
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