Out on his own in many facets, Novak Djokovic will aim to join a select few in his latest record pursuit at Roland Garros with a special record in his grasp after his Golden Slam dreams fell short likely for the final time.
Losing to Jannik Sinner at the Australian Open, his chances of winning all 4 Grand Slams and an Olympic Gold Medal fell by the wayside and he won't be able to join Steffi Graf in that achievement. But he could join the German great in winning a fourth title. He would be the only tennis player alongside Graf and the only ever in the history of men's singles to have won all four majors at least four times. He has won the Australian Open 10 times, Roland Garros 3 times, Wimbledon 7 times and US Open 4 times which means there is only one gap left for history.
Graf in achieving this feat initially won the Australian Open four times, Roland Garros six times, Wimbledon seven times and US Open five times. One of the last great records that Djokovic could break, but a title he isn't counting out Nadal yet and still sees him as the favourite.
"The Roland Garros is really a long way away. We need to see how the tennis players will play in the coming months, in particular during the clay season. It is a completely different surface from the others and is played in different conditions. Some play better on clay and are favoured, it is a surface that adapts to a certain type of tennis player.Nadal remains the number one favorite should he play the tournament," said Djokovic.
"Regardless of the fact that he hasn't played much, we're talking about the Roland Garros. Of course there are Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner. The top five or ten players in the world can be considered the favorites to win the final. There are still many months to go, we'll see how the situation evolves,"