Andy Murray believes Novak Djokovic winning the US Open is proof that changing of the guard in tennis will have to wait for another time to happen. On Sunday, Djokovic defeated Daniil Medvedev in the US Open final to win his third Grand Slam title of the year and overall his 24th career Slam.
Djokovic, who turned 36 in May, made the finals in all four Grand Slams this year and he is still a very dominant force in the game. “It’s up to the young guys to be pushing Novak and looking to overtake him. It doesn’t look like that’s close to happening.
Novak’s been an incredible player for a very long time, like Roger and Rafa, it’s the longevity and how long they’ve all been able to do that for. Novak’s longevity has been the greatest. He’s played at this level for such a long time now,” Murray told BBC Sport.
Murray backs Djokovic’s dominance to continue
The only Slam where Djokovic didn’t win it all this year was Wimbledon, where the Serb was beaten by Carlos Alcaraz in five sets.
After 20-year-old Alcaraz prevented Djokovic from winning his fifth consecutive Wimbledon title, some started claiming that moment signaled the start of a new era in tennis. After Djokovic’s US Open win, Murray says it is obvious that everything stays as usual.
“I said that after Wimbledon, everyone was saying it was a changing of the guard, but it wasn’t for me. It was quite clear Novak had won two of the first three slams and was very, very close in the final of Wimbledon. He proved that he’s the best player in the world again yesterday and like I said it’s up to the youngsters to improve enough to take him.
I don’t think he’s going to stop at 24 titles, but you never know how long it will last. Physically, motivation, whether someone like Alcaraz improves – he’s an amazing player Alcaraz, he’s brilliant, but to do what Novak is doing on a consistent basis is different.
It’s not the same as doing it for 15-20 weeks a year like Novak is doing, every time he steps on the court. I do think that Alcaraz will soon get to that level but I don’t think this is going to be the last time that Novak wins a Grand Slam,” Murray said.
