Novak Djokovic became the first player to cross the $10 million mark in prize money in the 2023 season after winning his fourth US Open title last Sunday.
Djokovic downed Daniil Medvedev in the final to pick up a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam singles title. Thanks to the US Open's allocation of record amounts in prize money for the tournament, the Serbian man earned a paycheck amounting to $3 million for two weeks of work.
Therefore, Djokovic takes his overall prize money earned for the season to a staggering $10,590,175, eclipsing Carlos Alcaraz who has made over $9 million fortune for his efforts on the court. The new US Open champion also extends his unprecedented dominance in career prize money earned to $175,281,484.
Djokovic has played in all four Grand Slam finals this season, bagging three titles and attaining one runner-up finish to his name. The four prestigious tournaments on the calendar account for the biggest prize money, and these significantly swung the pendulum in Djokovic's favor, whose priority at this stage of his career is directed at them.
The 24-time major winner is now the favorite to top the yearly prize money charts for the fourth season in a row. Last year, the Belgrade native made an impressive $9,934,582 despite missing out on important events like the Australian Open, US Open, Indian Wells, and Miami due to the COVID-19 restrictions.
Nevertheless, an eye-catching paycheck of $4,740,300 for going undefeated at the 2022 ATP Finals (record prize money earned by a champion), enhanced his yearly income for the season, putting him clear of the rest of the players in the prize money leaderboard.
With two months of the regular season remaining in 2023, Djokovic has already surpassed last year's prize money, and has now earned an eight-figure income from winning tennis tournaments for the sixth time in his career, but still a long way off from his own record of $21,146,145 he earned during the 2015 season.