Djokovic surpasses Nadal to clinch 23rd Grand Slam with French Open 2023 crown; fans applaud historic feat

The 'Big Three' of men's tennis—Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic—have amassed grand slams for years, each giving themselves a claim to the title of best men's player of all time. With Federer retired and Nadal injured, Djokovic had the opportunity to stake his own claim in that unending debate. And the Serbian latched on to it on Sunday as he surpassed the Spaniard to clinch a record 23rd Grand Slam at the Roland Garros with an emphatic win over Casper Rudd to be crowned French Open 2023 champion.

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With his 7-6, 6-3, 7-5 win over Ruud at the French Open 2023 grand finale, Djokovic replaced Carlos Alcaraz as the World No.1 player and became the first male player to win each Grand Slam tournament at least three times. It's also interesting to note that Ruud took on Rafael Nadal in his maiden major final in the French capital last year, where the Spaniard charged to a then-record-extending 22nd major trophy.

Ruud got out to a great start on Court-Philippe Chatrier, but Djokovic overcame him to secure his historic victory. The third seed won the first set after trailing 1-4 in the tie-break. He then produced some of his best hitting of the past two days in the second and third sets en route to a three-hour, 13-minute victory. With this win, Djokovic also eclipsed Rafael Nadal as the oldest Roland Garros champion at the age of 36 years and 20 days. 

Djokovic scarcely looked back after stopping Ruud's early assault en route to increasing his advantage in their ATP Head2Head series to 5-0. The Serbian won 80% (59/74) of the points after his first serve while outhitting the fourth seed by 52 to 31.

Ruud, who was competing in his third final game in the past five major championships, fought valiantly but was unable to keep up his brilliant start. After 4-3 in the first set, the 24-year-old, who advanced to the finals of both the US Open and Roland Garros in 2022, was unable to earn more than two points in a return game as Djokovic mercilessly thwarted his opponent's attempts to rally.

Djokovic reclaims World No.1 spot

By winning the Roland Garros championship on Sunday, Novak Djokovic ensured his return to the top spot in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. On Monday, the Serbian will assume the top position and start his record-extending 388th week with a 420-point advantage over Carlos Alcaraz.

Djokovic defeated Alcaraz in the Paris semifinals, positioning himself to retake the top spot. The 26-year-old then completed his comeback by winning the title match against Casper Ruud.

Djokovic will hold the top spot for the third time this year, and he will do it again in 2023 if he wins another major. He has climbed the peak of men's tennis multiple times after winning the Australian Open and Roland Garros.

Djokovic surpassed Stefanie Graf's previous mark of 377 weeks held by a male or female tennis player as the World No. 1 in February. Only one other athlete, Roger Federer (310 weeks), has held the top spot for more than 300 weeks.

Djokovic, 36, will now push forward in order to achieve 400 weeks in September.

Djokovic is in the lead in the competition for the No. 1 ranking at the conclusion of the year as he also leads the Pepperstone ATP Live Race to Turin. The Serbian is attempting to win his eighth year-ending ATP No. 1 title sponsored by Pepperstone, breaking his previous record of seven (2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2020, 2021).