After breaking a series of records during his straight sets win over Kei Nishikori in the final of the Miami Masters, Novak Djokovic is already planning his next offensive on the ATP Tour.
At the Miami Masters, the world No.1 equaled Andre Agassi’s record of six Miami Open titles. The latest triumph has made Djokovic the first man in history to win 28 Masters 1000 titles and moved him nearer to becoming the first player to history to earn over $100 million in prize money. The Serbian currently boasts a prize money fund of $98,199,548, surpassing Roger Federer’s record of $97,855,881. He is also the first player in history to win back-to-back titles in Indian Wells and Miami three years in a row.
The Djokovic camp will be delighted about the achievements of the Serbian, however, there is little time to celebrate with the upcoming clay court season swiftly approaching. The world No.1 has an impressive collection of 62 titles, however, there is still one prominent trophy that is missing from his cabinet, the French Open. Some have suggested that in order for Djokovic to be considered as one of the greatest players of all-time, he needs to win the Roland Garros title at least once. He has come within touching distance of the prestigious title, being runner-up at the tournament three times since 2012.
Looking ahead to the clay court season, which features three European Masters events, Djokovic is confident of a smooth transition as he bids to end his Paris drought.
“I don’t think I’ll have any difficulty to make transition to the clay courts quickly and swiftly enough,” The world No.1 said.
Hopefully it ends with a win in Paris,” Djokovic added. “That’s one of the big goals every year.”
Another prime event on Djokovic’s 2016 schedule is the Rio Olympics in August. The Serbian already has one medal from the Olympics, a bronze medal from the 2008 games in Beijing. Seeded second at the 2012 London Olympics, he suffered a shock loss to Juan Martin Del Potro in the bronze medal playoff. The somewhat substandard Olympic record, has made Djokovic hungrier than ever for golden glory in Rio.
“That’s one of the dreams I have and one of the biggest inspirations right now in my career is to win a gold medal at the Olympic Games,” Djokovic said.
“To be alongside the top athletes from all the different sports around the world and to dine with them, talk with them, see them perform live, is a unique experience I think every athlete looks forward to every four years.”
The world No.1 will start his clay court season next week at the extravagant Monte Carlo Masters, where he is the defending champion. If he wins in Monte Carlo, Djokovic will become the fifth player to win back-to-back titles in Monte Carlo since 1980 after Bjorn Borg, Thomas Muster, Juan Carlos Ferrero and Rafael Nadal.
