Novak Djokovic is back inside the top-3 for the first time since July last year. Novak claimed his 22nd Major title at the Australian Open and added 2000 ATP points to his tally. Thus, he conquered the ATP throne and continued his quest toward unprecedented 400 weeks as world no. 1. Also, Djokovic became the fifth 35-year-old player in the top-3, joining Ken Rosewall, Rod Laver, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. These five legends are the oldest top-3 players since the start of the ATP ranking in 1973, with Jimmy Connors and Andre Agassi as their closest rivals. Laver and Rosewall were the top-3 players at 36 and 40, respectively, in 1975. Roger Federer joined the party at 38 years in 2020, thanks to his notable results in the previous season. Rafael Nadal kicked off the current season in the top-3, closing to Rod Laver but failing to match the Aussie following the Australian Open disaster. Novak Djokovic joined the legends following his tenth Australian Open crown, hoping to catch Laver in a year.
Novak Djokovic is the fifth-oldest top-3 player.
The Serb was not in an ideal ranking position last July, despite winning his 21st Major crown at Wimbledon. Novak lost the points at Roland Garros and missed 2000 at the All England Club. Also, he could not play in the upcoming Masters 1000 events and the US Open. Djokovic made a fresh start in September, playing his first ATP tournaments in over two months. The Serb won titles in Tel Aviv and Astana, earning 750 ATP points and improving his tally. Hungry for more, Novak set his eyes on his seventh Paris Masters crown. Djokovic reached the final and fell to the young gun Holger Rune after a massive battle in the decider.
Novak secured 1350 points at those three events, and the best was yet to come in Turin. The Serb conquered the ATP Finals after scoring all five victories, finishing the season on a high note and earning a chance to become world no. 1 at the start of 2023. Djokovic kicked off the new season with the Adelaide title, adding 250 points and winning his fourth title from the previous five tournaments. Novak injured his left leg during the campaign and did not look good in the early Australian Open stages. Djokovic battled past Enzo Couacaud and Grigor Dimitrov to reach the fourth round, doing everything to take the pain away and remain in contention. The Serb felt better for the rest of the tournament, storming over Alex de Minaur, Andrey Rublev and Tommy Paul to reach the title clash. Djokovic defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 7-6, 7-6 for his tenth Australian Open title and the 22nd Major crown. With those 2000 ATP points, Novak passed Carlos Alcaraz and started his seventh reign on the ATP throne.
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