Masterful Djokovic leaves rest far behind

AS FAR as emphatic statements of intent are concerned, Novak Djokovic’s Wimbledon dismissal of Rafael Nadal could barely have come at a better time.

Djokovic will wake up this morning with a replica of the famous trophy on his sideboard and his undisputed status as the new world number one being hailed across the globe.

All that mattered to Djokovic on Centre Court yesterday, where he triumphed 6-4 6-1 1-6 6-3, was the realisation of a dream he has harboured since he was a small boy growing up in Belgrade, where he started playing tennis at the age of four.

But it is entirely fitting that after a scarcely believable year which has brought 48 victories from 49 matches, his greatest triumph should be rubber-stamped by his rise to the top of the rankings.

Djokovic cemented that position after his semi-final win over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Yet had Nadal cut him down to claim his second consecutive grand slam crown, Djokovic’s elevation would have come with an asterisk attached.

There are those who say grand slam greatness is the only true measure of a tennis player’s worth. Witness the farce in the women’s game where the major-less Caroline Wozniacki still reigns. On the grandest stage of all, Djokovic proved emphatically that he is the best — an enormous achievement at the best of times, not least when you are embroiled in perhaps the greatest men’s tennis era of themall.

With Roger Federer’s dominance having faded, Djokovic has stepped up to the mark. The statistics say it all. Five of those extraordinary wins this year have come against Nadal.

Djokovic took his time to get to this point. Rising through the rankings in tandem with his good friend Andy Murray, his early appearances on the big stage were ravaged by inconsistency and injury issues.

Even in the midst of his greatest run there were doubters who wondered whether he truly represented a challenge to Nadal’s dominance after he was swatted by Federer in the French Open semis.

He headed to Wimbledon with the relatively underwhelming record of two semi-final losses to show for his previous six appearances. He was far from ruthless in his wins over Marcos Baghdatis and Bernard Tomic along the way.

Yet, like all the greatest champions, Djokovic rose to the occasion when it mattered most. He out-battered Nadal with searing winners, especially in a second set almost as perfect as you are ever going to see.

Long before the end, Nadal cut a relatively disconsolate figure, as if aware that he was unable to turn on the turbo-boosters which had so ruthlessly swept him past Murray after losing the first set of their semi-final.

Djokovic was a different matter entirely. One of the most popular players on the tour, he is now indisputably the best, and should go into the year’s final grand slam in New York as the red-hot favourite.

He reigns supreme at the head of an era that has probably known no equal. Nadal will not be easily repelled, and while Federer slips away the likes of Juan Martin Del Potro begin to show signs of rising to the challenge.

All of which, you could say, is bad news for Murray. If the Scot watched and learned anything yesterday from Djokovic’s masterclass, it would be just how big the gulf in class has grown between himself and his former teenage rival.

It is up to Murray, just as it is up to Nadal and Federer and Del Potro and the distant others, to raise their level to match the new benchmark set by Djokovic. Failing that, Serbian domination could be set to continue for some time to come.