By Chris Oddo | Friday, April 3, 2015

 

Novak Djokovic had one of the most dominant years in tennis history in 2011, and ESPN's Brad Gilbert says he wouldn't be surprised if he hits that level again in 2015.

Photo Source: Corleve

Since 2011, when the tennis cognoscenti realized that Novak Djokovic has the potential to be terrifyingly good and sustain that level of terrifying goodness for an inordinate amount of time, we've patiently waited for the Serb to unleash his wrath upon the rest of the tennis world once again.

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Since winning three of four majors in 2011, Djokovic’s pace has slowed to one per year, and he’s only won a major once away from his favorite Australian Open. Of course there are some factors that have been out of Djokovic’s control. Andy Murray reached new heights in 2012 and 2013 when he caught fire and broke out to win the US Open and Wimbledon, squashing Djokovic in the final of both, and Rafael Nadal unleashed his own brand of whoop on the tour in 2013 when he returned from injury to claim half of that year’s majors.

This year could be different, says ESPN analyst and former world No. 4 Brad Gilbert. “I think that Djokovic is in for a monster year, a lot like what we saw in 2011,” he told reporters on an ESPN conference call earlier this week. “I actually thought maybe we would have seen that last year or the year before, but what I'm seeing so far early is somebody has to play unbelievably well every match to be able to have a chance to beat him. I'm expecting a monster year.”

A “monster” year could mean a lot of things for Djokovic—more money, more fame and more of the respect that he deserves. It could also put him on the fringes of a conversation that up until now has only included Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and the ghosts of tennis past: GOAT talk.

This week I asked Andy Roddick about Djokovic’s perceived place among the greats. I’ll admit, I botched the question and sounded like a fool (long story and I’ll spare you the details), but eventually the discussion led to some serious talk about Djokovic’s already glistening list of achievements.

“What did Mac [John McEnroe] have seven, Connors and Agassi had eight, so he’s already in the discussion with those guys which is pretty lofty company,” Roddick said. “Maybe the general public is starting to realize it now, but to win as many majors as Agassi and Connors is a huge deal.”

Despite the obvious fact that Djokovic is miles behind Nadal and Federer in terms of majors won (he’s six behind Nadal and nine behind Federer if you’re scoring at home), Roddick agrees that Djokovic has a chance to worm his way into the conversation.

“I think he would even tell you that he’s still a fair bit behind Rafa and Roger,” Roddick said. “I mean, six Slams is no small thing, and I think until he starts creeping into those numbers, it’s hard to make the argument. But if he wins the Career Slam, we always like to choose one, but he’s definitely one of the best players ever, probably already, and if he wins the Career Slam it just increases it even more.”