Top Five Tennis Predictions for Novak Djokovic in 2020

How will the year 2020 shape up for Novak Djokovic? Here’s what we believe could happen in this upcoming year for one of the contenders for the greatest of all times tennis players, Djokovic.

With two Grand Slam titles, two ATP Masters 1000s, an ATP 500 title and several deep runs across the season, it was another strong year for Novak Djokovic. However, having lost the battle for the year end number one ranking to Rafael Nadal and having faced some early round losses at different points this season, it seems at times that the season gone by did not always meet Novak Djokovic’s lofty standards.

With fifteen major titles this decade, and more year end number one rankings than anyone (this decade), Djokovic has established himself as arguably the player of the decade. With both Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal having established themselves at the pinnacle of the sport by the turn of the last decade, Djokovic has emerged from being ‘third’ in that crowd, to being at par with both, and ending the decade with a superior all time head-to-head against both.

With all his achievements and truly among the all-time greats of the game, what can we expect from Novak Djokovic in 2020?

At 16 Grand Slam titles, Djokovic inches closer to the tallies of Federer and Nadal at 20 and 19 respectively, and 2020 will play a crucial part in determining how close he gets to those numbers.

Here is a look at some broader insight into his 2020 season.

Hard, Indoor Courts Supreme Reign To Wane

Djokovic has been the unanimous choice for the best among his contemporaries on the hard and indoor courts, evidenced by his seven Australian Open titles, five year ATP Finals titles and other success at US Open, ATP Masters 1000, ATP 500 levels.

With an increase in the abilities and improvement in the results of the ‘Next Gen’, Djokovic’s invincibility on the faster surfaces will continue to be challenged.

Roger Federer has always been his biggest challenger on the faster courts, but with the likes of Stefanos Tsitsipas, Alexander Zverev, Daniil Medvedev and plenty more increasing in skill and confidence, the competition gets stiffer.

Early losses at Indian Wells and Miami, losses to Tsitsipas, Medvedev and Thiem at Shanghai, Cincinatti and London respectively was evidence this year already that the unopposed reign on the faster surfaces is drawing to a close.

In 2019, Djokovic’s successes on the faster courts involved titles at the Australian Open, Paris Masters, Japan Open among deep runs elsewhere, which already reads much leaner than the ‘peaking’ Djokovic of 2011, 2015 and late 2018.

Our Prediction: TWL believes that Djokovic will still win titles on the faster surfaces, but not with the ease and authority that he has done in the past. One Masters 1000 title and one Grand Slam on the faster courts seem the best case prediction on the faster surfaces for Djokovic in 2020.

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Australian Open Dominance Will be Challenged

Djokovic has dominated the Australian Open for most of this decade. The Serb has won six titles this decade and seven overall, with a level of authority that has made the rest of the competition at times look pedestrian. The most recent example of this being his straight sets authoritative win against Rafael Nadal in the men’s final in 2019.

TWL believes that 2020 will see the most open Australian Open field in a while. Not only will the likes of Nadal and Federer challenge Djokovic, but the crowd of Thiem, Tsitsipas, Zverev, Medvedev and more will be right up there in the fray.

Medvedev during the US hard court season, and Thiem and Tsitsipas during the European indoor season, Asian swing and year end ATP finals displayed what they are capable of on such surfaces and one can expect the same and more from them when the new season kicks off Down Under.

Our Prediction: Djokovic will not win the Australian Open in 2020

Closing in on Nadal, Federer Grand Slam Tally?

Once the overwhelming favorite at every major tournament outside of clay, 2019 has provided evidence that that trend is waning and will not always be the case in 2020.

While Djokovic did win two Grand Slam titles in 2019, the going got difficult for him in the latter part of the year. Additionally, a semi-final loss to Thiem at Roland Garros, a Wimbledon final victory where he was clearly not the better player that day and a US Open fourth round loss to an overpowering Stanislas Wawrinka (albeit Djokovic not being at his best) was evidence that the Serb can be uprooted on the biggest of stages.

While he will face his challenges during the season, expect Djokovic to be at the deep end of most major tournaments and definitely add to his 16 slam count in 2020. While the Australian Open and Wimbledon still remain the two majors that suit him the most, experts will not want to rule him out at any major.

Our Prediction: Djokovic will end 2020 with his Slam Count at 17.

Year End Number One Will Be Uphill

As the ‘Big Three’ continue to weaken their stronghold on the major title winners names with the advent of Next Gen and more, the equitable distribution of ATP points across the year is evidently more widespread.

With the Next Gen expected to finally step up on the bigger stage in 2020 and onwards, any member of the Big Three not only has their age old rivals but also several other viable contenders to face up to, sometimes relatively early at major tournaments.

Winning major titles will continue to get more challenging and with Djokovic intermittently facing fitness concerns (or finally choosing to play a limited schedule), year end number one will be a difficult proposition for him.

Our Prediction: Expect Djokovic to feature in the top two of the ATP year end rankings, but it will be an even more challenging task than 2019 to end the year as world number one.

Another Wimbledon Title Awaits

Despite the Australian Open being the title he has won the most and the major he has dominated the most, Djokovic has won five Wimbledon titles this decade. Winning three of those five finals against Roger Federer is the icing on the cake.

The grass courts of Wimbledon provide a unique challenge, and apart from Roger Federer, no one has proven themselves yet to be a viable challenger to Novak Djokovic.

The short grass swing, the quick transition from clay to grass after a tiring European summer on the dirt, and the occasion of being at Wimbledon itself are all reasons why none of the ‘Next Gen’ or others have managed to find any sort of success there just yet.

With Roger Federer inching closer to 39 by Wimbledon 2020, although he will always be ‘amongst’ the favorites to win at SW19, chances of another title get less every passing year. Although he has won Wimbledon twice, and has made deep runs in the last two years, it remains Nadal’s weaker surface and major.

Taking all factors into consideration, a healthy and motivated Djokovic remains a clear favorite at the title again.

Our Prediction: Djokovic to win Wimbledon 2020

What do you think of these Djokovic predictions?

Also read on for our Federer 2020 predictions here and Nadal 2020 predictions here.