Stop making weak Djokovic arguments, Nadal is tennis’ GOAT

Rafael Nadal had barely lifted the Australian Open trophy before Novak Djokovic’s army of supporters started making desperate attempts to rewrite history.

They’re a sensitive bunch this morning, the Novak Djokovic army, after their man was emphatically usurped in the race to be considered tennis’ greatest ever player.

Cold-hard statistics, so long their best friend in the GOAT debate, were suddenly telling the wrong story after Rafael Nadal edged in front in the most important marker of them all by winning his 21st grand slam title at the Australian Open.

But that didn’t stop Djokovic’s rabid fan base from quickly falling back on other weak arguments.

Here's the ones you’ll hear the most — and why they don’t stack up.

Djokovic would have won this year’s Australian Open and the 2020 US Open

Rafael Nadal has edged ahead of Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic with 20 grand slams.

In the minds of Djokovic’s fans he’s actually won 22 grand slams not 20.

They’re convinced he was cantering to the 2020 US Open crown before infamously hitting a tennis ball into a line judge and getting himself disqualified.

He would have won this year’s Australian Open too if not for being unceremoniously sent home before the tournament began.

They might be right, but if we’re handing out imaginary trophies then Nadal has a claim to just as many — if not more.

You know why the Djoker Army were so confident of his claims at Flushing Meadows two years ago? Because Nadal, the defending US Open champion, wasn’t playing because he was injured.

It was one of a handful of times the Spanish star was sidelined from a tournament he would have entered with as good a chance as anyone of winning.

Nadal won Wimbledon in 2008 and 2010 but missed 2009 with injury. He won the US Open in 2010 and 2013 but was sidelined in 2012 and 2014. There’s a strong case he could have picked up at least two more titles from these absences.

He also pulled out injured in the third round of a 2016 French Open that was won by Djokovic. Nadal won the next four editions of that tournament. Do Djoker’s fans want to put an asterisk next to that title?

The point is we only count the trophies that are lifted.

Djokovic has a better head-to-head record against Nadal

Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal shake hands at the end of their men's singles semi-final at the 2021 French Open. (Photo by MARTIN BUREAU / AFP)

Djokovic has a 30-28 advantage in the most prolific rivalry in modern-day men’s tennis.

Mounting a GOAT case on such a narrow margin is fraught to begin with, but it becomes even less convincing when you break those wins down.

At majors — where it really matters — Nadal has a 10-7 advantage, including 5-4 in grand slam finals.

Djokovic has spent the most weeks as world number one

If Djokovic has any advantage over Nadal and Federer it’s his ironman status.

The soon-to-be 35-year-old has been a physical phenomenon, only missing one grand slam through injury in his career in late 2017.

It’s his availability as much as his brilliance that secured him the record for the most weeks as world number one (357 and counting) — well ahead of Federer’s 310 weeks with Pete Sampras (287), Ivan Lendl (270), Jimmy Connors (268) and Nadal (209) trailing behind.

But would Nadal have spent more time at the top — and in turn reduced the number of weeks Djokovic spent there — if not for injury? Almost certainly.

Nadal has won most of his grand slams at the French Open

Of Nadal’s 21 slam victories, 13 have come at Roland Garros. It’s true he has the most lopsided major haul but it’s not as though Djokovic (nine Australian Open titles) and Federer (eight Wimbledon crowns) didn’t have a favourite court either.

And by winning his second Australian Open title, Nadal now has at least two on every surface so if you’re calling him a one-trick pony you’re clutching at straws.

Who will finish as the GOAT?

Rafael Nadal has his nose in front. (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)

“For me … the debate of the GOAT is over,” former top 10 regular David Ferrer says. “Unless Djokovic beats him, Nadal will be the best in history. Tennis is about victories, the most important titles, and since he has won them all, he would naturally be the best in history.”

It’s hard to argue with him right now, but this race is far from over.

Nadal’s best chance is to move two slams ahead of Djokovic and Federer by winning his 14th French Open in four months time.

He’s currently the favourite to win the tournament and those odds will shorten even further if Djokovic is denied entry because of his vaccination status.

From there Nadal can rely on the likes of Daniil Medevedev to play spoiler. The gap has undoubtedly closed between the Russian and the legends who came before him and if Djokovic needs three more majors to move back in front it might prove a bridge too far.

Does Federer still have a place in this debate?

As much as the majority of tennis fans would love to believe Federer is still the GOAT, any discussion of his place at the pinnacle of the men’s game will have to be based on popularity, impact and style — not winning.

Federer was undoubtedly talented enough to be remembered as the best to ever do it but he just let too many titles slip through his fingers (Wimbledon 2008, 2019, Australian Open 2009, US Open 2009) to create the buffer he needed to hold off Nadal and Djokovic.