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Djokovic owes success to his rivals

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Djokovic owes success to his rivals
Novak Djokovic poses with his French Open trophy on Place de la Concorde in Paris on Monday after beating Andy Murray in the final at the Roland Garros on Sunday night.

Published: Mon 6 Jun 2016, 10:18 PM

Last updated: Tue 7 Jun 2016, 12:47 AM

He is the tennis version of the Incredible Hulk and on Sunday Novak Djokovic made his closest rivals turn green with envy as he finally achieved something no man had accomplished for nearly half a century.
Playing what he described as "flawless tennis" over the last three sets of his 3-6 6-1 6-2 6-4 win over Andy Murray, Djokovic cracked his Roland Garros jinx at the 12th attempt - and fourth final there - to win the French Open.
It allowed the Serbian world number one to hold all four Grand Slam titles at the same time - a milestone that is so difficult to reach that it had not been done by a man since Australian Rod Laver won the second of his calendar Grand Slams in 1969.
In an era when it is tough to keep track of the countless records achieved by Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal - who own 31 majors between them - Djokovic managed to complete a feat that was just out of reach for his rivals-in-chief.
The world number one conceded, however, that he would not be the player he is had it not been for his rivals. "Nadal and Federer were so dominant in the sport when Andy and myself came into the mix. At the beginning I was not glad to be part of their era," said the 29-year-old.
"These two guys, and Andy as well, have helped me to become a better player and helped me achieve all these things," said Djokovic.
"The rivalries that we have are important for the sport, and in one way or another you try to compare yourself to them and what they have achieved before."
Federer (17 majors), Nadal and Pete Sampras (both 14) still top Djokovic in the list of all-time grand slam title holders.

By Reuters

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