The 23, in sport, has this little something mythical. Because the number sticks to the skin of the greatest basketball player in history, a certain Michael Jordan. And because it could allow, this Sunday evening, June 11, Novak Djokovic to seize the unofficial place of the greatest tennis player of all time by winning his 23rd Grand Slam title.
For the time being, the Serb shares the record of 22 major trophies with the Spaniard Rafael Nadal, master of the place at Roland-Garros, absent from this edition due to a bruised body.
It must be admitted, seeing “Djoko” overtake his biggest rival on home soil would offer a little more to his quest for eternity. For this, the world number 3 will have to outclass one of Nadal’s heirs, Casper Ruud, a resident of the Rafa Nadal Academy since 2018 and close to Toni, the uncle of the Mallorcan genius.
Which player will the public support?
The 24-year-old Norwegian masters the game on ocher like few players on the circuit. And unlike Carlos Alcaraz, let go by his nerves on Friday, Ruud will have nothing to lose. If not a second row final in Paris, defeated by the “bull of Manacor” in 2022.
The nerves could, on the contrary, well invade the body of Novak Djokovic on Sunday. Because, despite all his experience, his 36 years on the clock and his house filled with trophies, the Serb has already experienced tension when meeting History. In 2021, on the verge of a calendar Grand Slam (winning the four majors in a row, the same year), he collapsed against the placid Daniil Medvedev in the final of the US Open. Djokovic plays for him, for the books, for Serbia and much more. A weight that could weigh down his shoulders this Sunday and prevent him from mastering the event.
Serena Williams – and her 23 (well, well!) Grand Slam titles – has never been able to reach the top step. The American broke her teeth four times in the final as she touched her 24th Major, synonymous with a record equaled with Australian Margaret Court.
His record against the Norwegian? 4-0, no sets lost
Can this syndrome affect Novak Djokovic? The latter has something to reassure himself with regard to his record against Casper Ruud: 4 matches, including 2 on clay, 4 wins, no set lost. But no sportsman wins a match before having played it and this final promises to be much tighter than what these statistics say.
The attitude of the public will count. In a changing mood about Djokovic, will the court Philippe-Chatrier choose to support the legend or the (very) discreet Casper Ruud, whom few really know? Friday, against Carlos Alcaraz, the Serb still attracted the whistles for a break in the toilets considered a little long between two sets. A tennis player but also a politician, “Djoko” has never represented the “beautiful game” of a Roger Federer or the combativeness and fair play of a Rafael Nadal.
The criticisms, the whistles, he “doesn’t care”, as he repeated on Friday evening. Novak Djokovic especially wants the recognition of his family, in the world of tennis as in Serbia. With a 23rd Grand Slam title, he would undoubtedly close the debates around his status as “best player in history”: “You can’t fight against mathematics, admitted to us this week Andreï Medvedev, finalist at Roland- Garros in 1999. I love Roger, I love Rafa, I respect them so much. But, from a numerical point of view, there is no possible debate. »
In the hearts of each other, the debate is quite different. A view that even 35 Grand Slam wins will never change.
