Djokovic in 2024: Olympic gold to complete career golden slam
Despite injuries and trouble with motivation, the Serb won the only major title to elude him
Novak Djokovic gestures to the crowd during an exhibition tennis match against Argentina’s Juan Martin Del Potro in Buenos Aires – © Gustavo Garello/AP/SIPA
Eyes full of tears, body trembling, knees on the clay of Court Philippe-Chatrier and his hands pointing to the sky – the image of Novak Djokovic winning the elusive Olympic gold medal at last was one of the greatest images in the sporting world in 2024, if not the greatest.
“Everything I felt in that moment when I won surpassed everything I thought or hoped that it would, said Djokovic on August 4.
“It definitely stands out as the biggest sporting achievement I have had.”
Exactly two months beforehand, on June 4, things seemed more than bleak when Djokovic withdrew before the French Open quarter-finals following a knee injury he sustained in his fourth-round win over Francisco Cerundolo. The following day he underwent surgery to repair a torn meniscus, with the Olympic Games at the forefront of his mind.
Defying logic, Djokovic recovered in time for Wimbledon and even made the final. Although he was dominated by Carlos Alcaraz in that final, he got in much-needed match play going into, what was for him, the most important tournament of the year.
“I see the fire in his eyes, the unreal focus in practices, he is as motivated as ever, so expect – everything“, said Viktor Troicki, captain of Serbia’s Davis Cup team and Djokovic’s childhood friend, ahead of his clash with Rafael Nadal in the second round of the Olympics.
Djokovic didn’t lose a set in Paris beating Matt Ebden, Nadal, Dominik Koepfer, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Lorenzo Musetti and Alcaraz – finally capturing the Olympics single gold medal on his fifth attempt. Djokovic became only the fifth player to win the career Golden Slam, winning all four major titles and the Olympic singles gold. He joined Steffi Graf, Andre Agassi, Nadal and Serena Williams.
Already holding almost every meaningful record in tennis, Djokovic admittedly struggled to find motivation as he played just six tournaments outside of the slams and the Olympics, compiling a 37-9 record and finishing without an ATP title for the first time since 2005, although he did have runners-up showings at Wimbledon and in Shanghai, where he chose to end his season, skipping the indoor tournaments altogether.
Bruised from a painful Davis Cup loss in 2023, Djokovic struggled at the Australian Open throughout the fortnight before losing comfortably to Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals. The knee injury overshadowed Roland Garros and Wimbledon, while his US Open campaign ended too soon, beaten in the third round by Alexei Popyrin, after an emotionally and mentally draining Olympics.
“I spent a lot of energy winning the gold, and I did arrive in New York just not feeling fresh mentally and physically. But because it’s the US Open, I gave it a shot,” said Djokovic.
Greatest win: Alcaraz won both Roland Garros and Wimbledon, he was on fire at the Olympics and a heavy favourite ahead of the final. The Spaniard played another extraordinary match, but Djokovic had a meeting with destiny. Playing aggressive, high-intensity tennis throughout the match and coming up big in the clutch moments, Novak won 7-6(3) 7-6(2).
“What if” moment: Despite his subpar clay-court season, Djokovic looked strong at the French Open before the knee injury, which affected his Wimbledon campaign too.
Look ahead: On the penultimate day of the season, the earthquake hit – Andy Murray will coach Novak Djokovic in the off-season and at the Australian Open. A couple of weeks ago, Djokovic said: “Tennis is still my focus! I am going at full throttle in the off-season, we are going for another ride.” The goal being – adding a record 25th Grand Slam title to his CV.
