Novak Djokovic kisses the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup wearing a jacket bearing the number '22' - the number of grand slams he has now won. Photo / AP
Novak Djokovic kisses the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup wearing a jacket bearing the number '22' - the number of grand slams he has now won. Photo / AP
Novak Djokovic is well aware of the GOAT debate.
The Serbian won a record 10th Australian Open title on Sunday with a 6-3 7-6 7-6 victory over Stefanos Tsitsipas.
It continued his remarkable streak of winning every Australian Open final he has contested and sees him draw level with Rafael Nadal at the top of the grand slam leaderboard with 22 titles.
After celebrating the historic victory in his player’s box and breaking down in emotional scenes, Djokovic put on an eye-catching jacket for the post-match trophy presentation.
Eagle-eyed fans noticed Djokovic was wearing a white zip-up Lacoste jacket with a 22 emblazoned on his chest in large font.
The bold look evoked memories of when Roger Federer took tennis fashion to the next level when he wore a white and gold blazers and cardigans at Wimbledon in the late 2000s and 2010s.
“To be honest, maybe people won’t believe me, but I had no clue about this jacket,” Djokovic told Eurosport.
“I actually took the other jacket to the ceremony and then my team told me to put this one on —nice of them.”
Novak Djokovic celebrates with his team including his mother, Dijana, left, after defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas in the men's singles final at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne. Photo / AP
Djokovic’s also team got in on the act, putting on T-shirts with the number 10 on the front in recognition of his 10th Aus Open win.
Djokovic joked about the jacket on Channel 9: “There’s only one. No more have been made.”
His 10th triumph at Melbourne Park means Djokovic now joins Nadal (14 French Open wins) and Margaret Court (11 Australian Open wins) as the only three players to win 10 or more grand slam singles titles at a single major.
Tied on 22 major titles with Nadal, Djokovic is now favoured to surpass that mark in the coming years and take his grand slam tally further into the twenties.
The debate around who is the greatest of all time is about more than just numbers, but with Federer now two behind his rivals on 20 grand slams, Djokovic has the opportunity to cement his status as the statistical GOAT.
Nadal’s tennis future is up in the air after a serious hip injury saw him limp out of the Australian Open in a second round loss.
The Spaniard is adamant he has no plans to retire just yet but there’s a sense he will be desperate to get his body right in time for another push for a French Open title in May.
Stefanos Tsitsipas heralded Novak Djokovic following Djokovic's victory at the Australian Open tennis championship. Photo / AP
Tsitsipas heralded Djokovic as the greatest tennis player ever in his post-match speech.
“He’s the one of the greatest in our sport and I think he’s the greatest that has ever held a tennis racquet for sure,” the Greek star said.
“I haven’t done this but I’d like to thank you for pushing our sport so far. I think it deserves a player like you that pushes everyone, every single player, every single individual that’s involved in the sport to the max.”
Todd Woodbridge said on Channel 9: “I thought it was a lovely moment when Stefanos said we need to say thank you for everything you’ve done in the sport.
“A lot of that has been given to Roger and Rafa. And he has driven the sport equally because he’s been the sport equally because he’s been the antagoniser.
“He has been the one who has come along and stopped all of those records going to Roger and a lot of people didn’t like that.”
