Former ATP player and current tennis analyst Mark Petchey has described Novak Djokovic as the 'Golden GOAT' following his monumental win at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Djokovic said ahead of this year that the most important event of the 2024 season for him was the Paris Olympics. He wanted the gold medal, the only title he had never won in his tennis career.
It was seen as something that would complete his career as a tennis player, arguably the greatest career we've ever seen. It was the missing puzzle for the Serbian, which seemed out of reach just a few weeks ago.
Carlos Alcaraz had easily beaten him in the Wimbledon final. The 37-year-old was still dealing with a knee issue after removing part of his meniscus just a month before, and his year up until that point was far from successful.
And then it happened. He won. As he always does. In style. Against the best player in the world at that moment. Against all odds. But he won. And that's why Mark Petchey thinks it's a fantastic achievement.
After Djokovic's win, the Brit coined a new nickname for him - the 'Golden GOAT', incorporating his argued GOAT (greatest of all-time) status, and his recently won gold medal.
"The Golden GOAT – say it quietly! I’ve always gone for the greatest of this era, but my goodness me, that was something else. When you look at his year, you look at the lack of top-10 wins, the lack of tournament wins, you look at the knee problem he sustained at the French."
Petchey was mostly amazed not by Djokovic winning the Olympic Games, but by him doing it at this very moment. Everything was against him, nothing pointed towards him winning, yet he did.
He's simply a phenomenal tennis player who keeps winning when he needs to, in the biggest moments, against all odds.
"He’s not just a phenomenal tennis player – which of course he is, because you can’t be great without being a phenomenal player. You can’t just be a mental giant, you can’t just be a physical beast, you also have to be an amazing tennis player."
"I personally think what Novak did on Sunday was his greatest ever achievement. I know ‘repeating’ is the hardest thing in sport, it’s not easy – it shows the character. But coming back five times, wanting to win it, wanting to achieve everything in the sport, he has climbed every single summit."
There is not much for Djokovic can achieve in tennis anymore. He has won it all, but he's still motivated and will keep playing. We don't know for how long, but apparently, he wants to play at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
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