How Coronavirus Will Affect the Novak Djokovic Season

Novak Djokovic started the year off in the most spectacular fashion. He took control of the inaugural ATP Cup and won it for his country. He then proceeded to take a step closer to Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer in terms of the Grand Slam tally.

Finally, he returned to Dubai Open after missing it for a few years and took home his third straight title on Tour.

A man in sublime touch, Djokovic will rue the absence of tennis in the following weeks.

The coronavirus has struck the planet hard and fast. It has crippled many countries, on different continents, and brought all public events to a halt. Sporting events have suffered prominently in this whole episode.

After realizing the grave situation we are under, the ATP, WTA, and ITF worked together to come to the decision of suspending the Tour until June 7. A wise decision to combat the spread of the virus.

Tennis is a sport in utter chaos at the moment. It is a unique sport in terms of the length of the season, which lasts about 11 months in a year. So we get to enjoy the sport almost all through the year. On the downside, though, it is quite difficult to adjust and re-schedule events that could not be played.

Good starts go a long way for Novak Djokovic

The way Novak Djokovic was playing, it was hard to imagine anyone else challenging him for the most part of the season. Keep in mind that the Serb has given us two of the greatest tennis seasons in history.

In 2011, Novak announced to the world his intent and ability to challenge Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal for supremacy. He went on a 41-match win streak all the way into the French Open semifinal, where he finally lost to Federer. He continued his onslaught after the stumble in Paris and won the remaining Majors.

It remains one of the greatest seasons in the history of the sport.

Fast forward to 2015 and Novak gave us another taste of his invincibility. He reached the final of all four Majors, becoming only the third man after Federer and Rod Laver to do so.

Furthermore, he won a record 6 ATP Masters titles and made all the finals of big tournaments he played.

The only blip in his 2015 season was missing out on the French Open. However, he came back the following year to win that as well.

I could keep listing his many records, or I could simply point you here.

With the initial Tour suspension, Indian Wells and Miami Open were the first two casualties. The COVID-19 situation only got worse after that, forcing the officials to extend the suspension until June 7.

Consequently, the clay-swing of the season is canceled, except for Roland Garros.

Moreover, ATP opted to freeze the rankings since the season is off for an extended period of time. This decision has a lot of intricate pros and cons for different players; some will suffer while others gain from it.

How will the whole coronavirus episode affect Novak Djokovic’s season? Let’s take a look.

World No. 1 record

Djokovic has high regard for the World No. 1 spot as would any player really. Having started the season at the No 2 spot, he raced past Nadal pretty soon, winning the first Major.

He remains the No.1 player in the world for now, following the ATP rankings freeze. However, the weeks during the suspension period are not counted towards his tally of total weeks at the summit.

Currently, Djokovic is on 281 weeks as World No. 1, just 5 short of Pete Sampras. Federer holds the record with a fabulous 310 weeks at the top.

No doubt Djokovic wants to set that record for himself and he is within touching distance of the feat too.

Had the season continued in a normal fashion, Novak only had to maintain his spot at the top until October 5 to beat Roger’s record.

Now, he might have to wait until next year to do so given current circumstances. With no tennis to be played in April and May, 8 weeks are lost in the next two months itself.

The positive here is that he can continue his charge towards the record once tennis resumes, and he absolutely will achieve it in the future.

His only real threat for the rank is Rafael Nadal. However, the Spaniard has a huge task of defending both the US Open and French Open in a span of 5 weeks near the end of the season.

Should he fail to do that, you can count on Novak to pounce and win those titles. He will also extend the gap between the two in doing so.

Wait to extend Masters tally

The Tour suspension means that 5 out of the 9 Masters are suspended, if not canceled. It is highly unlikely they can simply be rescheduled due to a lack of dates, which is a real shame.

Masters events are the most enticing tournaments after the Majors, and we get to watch some ferocious competition in them.

Novak Djokovic was in fine fettle in 2011 and 2015 when he won 5 and 6 Masters titles respectively. Setting a record in 2011 and breaking it in 2015. He boasts of 34 Masters titles in total, one short of the record 35 titles held by Nadal.

The cancelation of the Sunshine Double, in particular, is unfortunate for the Serb.

Between 2014 to 2016 Djokovic never lost in the Sunshine Doubles, getting a hat-trick of the coveted double. Including the 2011 Sunshine Double, Novak has achieved that feat an unprecedented four times.

Federer is the only other active player to have won the Sunshine Double, and he is indisposed, coronavirus or not.

Again, a missed chance for the World No.1 to add to his impressive tally. Although, it is not the most damaging side-effect of the suspension.

While Nole can’t add to his Masters tally, neither can Nadal. With 3 of the five canceled Masters events being on clay, you could argue Nadal would rue it more.

Lost momentum

Now this, according to me, is the biggest drawback to Novak Djokovic. Momentum is half the battle in tennis; you gain momentum which gives you confidence, while also putting your opponent under pressure.

Djokovic had all the momentum in the world after the first two months of the season.

Dominic Thiem came mighty close to dethroning Novak Down Under. Ultimately, though, he fell short as Novak bounced back to win.

As they say, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. Having snatched back the match from the brink of defeat, his confidence surged even higher.

He had a pretty smooth sailing at Dubai Open as well. His only real test came in the semifinals against Gael Monfils, who was a point away from victory. Once again, Djokovic rose to the occasion and removed the Frenchman from his path with surgical precision when needed.

You give a man like Nole some momentum, and all the other pieces fall into place. The puzzle will solve itself, the guitar will play itself. Okay, maybe I’m getting carried away.

But yes, if the momentum is in his favor, his mental fortitude and confidence will vanquish any shortcoming he may have, and he doesn’t have many.

Once the season re-starts, it will virtually be like starting the season anew. More than two months off the professional circuit is actually more than their official off-season.

Some might struggle to cope with the drastic changes in the season, but Djokovic surely won’t be one of them. A couple of wins right off the bat would definitely help the Serb regain the level of confidence he had earlier.

Novak Djokovic has everything to play for

Do not forget, the last time Novak started a season off like this, he went on to win three Grand Slams in the year. And he was never easy to beat even at the French Open, even for King Nadal. Even if you wrote him off the clay Major, he would still have an Olympic Gold to target.

Hopefully, all three of the remaining Grand Slams will be played. They are, after all, the holy grail in tennis, not just for the players, but fans too.

It will probably be the most complicated season in tennis, with the US Open and French Open taking place within a week of each other and other events looking to squeeze in wherever they can.

Perhaps it will still favor Djokovic if he can draw upon his immense mental fortitude while transitioning from hard court to clay. But if there is anyone who can rival Novak’s mental strength, it is Nadal.

Nadal will be at his best for the French Open, do not doubt this. He will fight tooth and nail to defend his title there. But I can’t help thinking, maybe the events are in just enough disarray to favor Djokovic.

Novak Djokovic knows no great achievement comes easy, and nothing is tougher than to beat the King on clay, but he also knows he has done it before.

And that is why I feel blue. With all the momentum in the world, I was sure he would go on to play another breathtaking season. And it wasn’t just a fantasy I cooked up, Djokovic was aiming for something similar.

“The new season has started the best way possible, that is winning the ATP cup with Serbia and afterwards defending the title at Australian Open. I’m motivated, as well inspired, to maybe achieve the best year in my career so far.”

A man of his experience and humility would not say these words lightly. He knew he was onto something special, some deep trance that enabled him to transcend any opponent he came up against on the court.

Alas, Novak had to go home since the season is suspended and bide his time until he can resume his mission.

I do not mean to demean other players on the ATP tour, especially not Rafael Nadal. I know however good Djokovic was playing, it was never going to be a cakewalk for him to rival his 2011 or 2015 season.

But I do believe that when he is on, he is the toughest man to beat in tennis and all its history. It is truly never over until it is over with this man. Just ask Roger Federer.