Djokovic 23rd Slam notwithstanding, Federer is the greatest

Former French Open champion Adriano Panatta believes that Novak Djokovic’s record-breaking 23rd Grand Slam title changes nothing in the tennis GOAT debate.

The former world No 4 described the Serb’s former rival Roger Federer as “the greatest” and argued the discussion is not just determined by “aesthetics” or “statistics.”

Djokovic claimed a men’s record 23rd major singles title with victory over Casper Ruud in the 2023 French Open final on Sunday.

The triumph saw him surpass Rafael Nadal, who he had been tied with on 22 Grand Slam crowns.

Federer, meanwhile, holds 20 major titles – with his last coming at the 2018 Australian Open. The Swiss called an end to his illustrious career in 2022.

In an interview with Corriere della Serra, Panatta weighed in on the debate over who is the greatest men’s player of all time following Djokovic’s historic victory.

“For me, nothing changes – Roger Federer is the greatest. It’s not just a matter of aesthetics. And not even of statistics, which they like so much but leave the time they find,” said the Italian.

“Let me explain better – in the few years that he has played, Borg has concentrated more Grand Slam victories than Djokovic, Nadal and Federer combined.

“Let’s do this – they’re all great. There is no greatest. Each dominates the historical period of him. Comparisons don’t make too much sense, they’re just journalistic whims: rackets, courts, balls, the way of being on the court and playing tennis change. Change everything.

“Does he (Djokovic) say he’s the best? I propose that we deal with it.”

Panatta, who won the French Open in 1976, also spoke of the memories evoked by returning to Paris.

“Coming to Roland Garros once a year makes me happy, something very beautiful happened in my career here, then real life is another thing,” he added.

“The most famous anecdote is that of the shoes that disappeared from the locker room before the final with [Harold] Solomon, me desperately calling Mabrouk, the employee we all loved so much. We discover that Bertolucci took them by mistake, restarting after our defeat in doubles.

“Moral – a round of phone calls, the shoes are delivered to an Alitalia pilot departing from Fiumicino to Charles de Gaulle and they arrive at Roland Garros a minute before I take the field.”

The Italian was the only player to defeat six-time French Open champion Bjorn Borg at Roland Garros – beating the Swede in 1973 and en route to his triumph in 1976.