Would you consider Djokovic above Sampras and Nadal if he wins Roland Garros?
Djokovic
6 AO
1 FO*
3 W
2 USO = 12 slams*
5 WTF
0 OG
26 MS
4 YE No1
250+ weeks at No1*
Nadal
1 AO
9 FO
2 W
2 USO 0 WTF
1 OG
27 MS
3 YE No1
141 weeks at No1
Sampras
2 AO 0 FO
7 W
5 USO
5 WTF = 14 slams
0 OG
11 MS
6 YE No1
286 weeks at No1
Comparing Djokovic with Nadal clear edge could be 5 WTF and 120+ weeks at first spot versus 2 slams and OG on Nadal side.
Sampras would miss FO and 15 MS to overcome Novak having on 2 slams and some other small numbers to cover the shortage.
It is only my observation. Discuss...
IF Novak were to win this year's FO he would be equal to Rafa and Pete, assuming Rafa does not win another slam this year. Novak's 5-0 advantage YE titles, more weeks at #1 and 2 more YE at #1 would equal Rafa. His much better clay court record and many more Masters titles would equal Pete at least, especially since he would have won all 4 slams which is somethin Pete did not do. Ture, he would not be the GOAT, but he would be close along with: Federer, Laver, Rosewall, Sampras and Nadal.
No, not with 12 slams, if he gets to 14 or even 13 then I think this can be debated, it's probably just a matter of time until he surpasses both though.
He would be very close to Nadal, but still slight advantage to Nadal. Sampras, nope. Weeks at #1, no WTF advantage...
Slams will come, most probably, at least 2 more, but Djokovic could really get the advantage with 'other' achievements - Olympic gold, CGS, "Golden Masters", number of Masters won, WTF titles, improving his weeks at #1 count and total titles count (and passing both of them).... The biggest one would, ofc, be CYGS, if he could somehow get 1 this year. But that's very improbable for now.
If he were to get CYGS, he would obviously be much higher than either of Rafa or Sampras. He would have 14 titles and a Nole slam as well as a calendar year slam. It wouldn't even be close. At that point Federer's GOAT status would be on life support.
If he wins RG he'd be the only player in the open era bar Laver to win the 4 slams in a row. He'd be only 2 slams behind Nadal and Sampras. I'd say he'd be level with Nadal, and would probably surpass him soon, but Sampras still has a lot of weeks at #1 and YE#1 so would be slightly ahead. He could catch up too, winning Cincinnatti or the OG would make be a huge achievement. I'd say if he wins RG, Cincinnati and the OG he would probably be the 2nd best player in the open era.
YEC titles and weeks at #1 are a good tiebreaker, but they don't equate to Slams. Once he claims his 14th then he will be ahead of Sampras and Nadal, not before.
If Djokovic has 13 slams with the massive difference in WTF and the gap between them in weeks at 1 becoming bigger, he will be the better player. Even more if he becomes the first player to win every Masters 1000.
I think he's already above both. He hasn't won the FO, but his consistency on a variety of surfaces and length of time at No. 1 gives the edge over Nadal. Considering Sampras won about half his grand slam titles at Wimbledon, his record really lacks variety, let alone his failure to win the FO. Of course, we shouldn't decide who has/had a better career solely based on their GS results, but considering Djokovic's latest form and what he has achieved in the last five years, it's not even debatable that he has done more than both Sampras and Nadal.
I think he's already above both. He hasn't won the FO, but his consistency on a variety of surfaces and length of time at No. 1 gives the edge over Nadal. Considering Sampras won about half his grand slam titles at Wimbledon, his record really lacks variety, let alone his failure to win the FO. Of course, we shouldn't decide who has/had a better career solely based on their GS results, but considering Djokovic's latest form and what he has achieved in the last five years, it's not even debatable that he has done more than both Sampras and Nadal.
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