"Only Novak Djokovic could experience the year he's had yet still play his way to Turin; Truly a remarkable player and man" - Tennis fans react to the Serb's 15th appearance in the ATP Finals

Novak Djokovic overcame a tumultuous year as he qualified for the season-ending ATP Finals for the 15th time in his career after capturing his 90th title in Astana.

After starting the year in dramatic fashion with his deportation saga at the Australian Open due to his unvaccinated status which further caused him to skip a number of tournaments from there, including last month's US Open, Djokovic finds himself vying for a record-tying sixth title in the year-end championships.

Fans on social media celebrated Djokovic's achievement, noting the Serb's challenging path to the ATP Finals, which he previously won in 2008 and from 2012 to 2015.

"Only Novak Djokovic could experience the year he's had yet still play his way to Turin. Truly a remarkable player and man. Couldn't respect and love him more. Never change," said Twitter user @luvinthetennis.

"Considering how much he’s missed this year, this is massive," said user @Vanshagar24.

"He made a goal, he achieved it. A great inspiration," said another.

Some fans went on to declare that the Serb is the GOAT, or the greatest of all time.

"Unbreakable Novak! The real GOAT," said one fan.

"The G.O.A.T Novak Djokovic will now definitely be there and I hope he wins the title at Nitto ATP Finals, too," said another supporter.

Djokovic's win in Astana pushed him to No. 10 in the Live Race to Turin, enough to earn him qualification in the eight-man season-ending finale via the Grand Slam champion provision. The Serb, current Wimbledon champion, is assured of a top-20 finish in the race thus awarding him a slot in the ATP Finals.

"I dare to dream; My intention was always to reach the highest heights in our sport" - Novak Djokovic

Novak Djokovic pocketed his 21st Grand Slam title at Wimbledon last July

Novak Djokovic earned a career milestone in Kazakhstan, seizing his 90th ATP tour-level title via a 6-3, 6-4 win against Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Asked post-match if winning that much was probably something he never dared to dream of when he started his tennis career, Djokovic said that, on the contrary, he did.

"I dare to dream, actually. I always hoped that I would be going to have a great career. Obviously, I didn’t know the amount of finals I'm going to play, the amount of tournaments I'm going to win, but my intention was always to reach the highest heights in our sport," said Novak Djokovic during his on-court interview.

Djokovic added that, at 35, he is grateful to be able to play the way he does.

"I'm just very grateful and blessed to be able to play this well at this stage of my life. You know, 35 is not the same as 25. But I think the experience, probably, in these kinds of big matches and big occasions helps as well to approach mentally in the right way these kinds of matches," said Djokovic.