Why Novak Djokovic's 2022 season only strengthens his case as the GOAT

If one had to pick Novak Djokovic's best season on the ATP Tour, there are a few that will immediately pop into mind: the 2011 season, where he stitched together a 41-match win-streak to start the year and ended up winning three out of the four Grand Slams, being foremost among them.

Then there is the 2015 season, where he won three Grand Slams, six Masters 1000 titles and the ATP Tour Finals, finishing the year with an overall winning percentage of 93%. There is also the 2021 season, where the 21-time Grand Slam champion once again lifted three Grand Slams and almost pulled off the Golden Slam-Calendar Grand Slam combo.

Compared to those ridiculous standards, the 35-year-old's 2022 season doesn't feel nearly good enough. After all, the Serb has won only one Grand Slam and dropped down the rankings from World No. 1 at the start to World No. 8 at the moment. Only four trophies have entered his cabinet this year -- the Monte-Carlo Masters, the Tel Aviv Open, the Astana Open and Wimbledon.

Djokovic, who usually qualifies for the year-ending ATP Tour Finals sometime around the French Open, also had to wait until after the US Open to seal his spot in the competition for the 15th time and fifth time in a row. Even that came through the Slam champion exemption rule, leading to a flurry of activity on social media, with fans and former tennis players chiming in on the issue and calling into question the rule's existence.

But underneath the radar, the former World No. 1 has quietly put in a season for the ages, whose legend grows even bigger if the trials and tribulations he went through during it are taken into consideration.

First, Novak Djokovic was prevented from defending his title at the Australian Open, deported from Australia in ignominy after non-compliance with the country's vaccination-related entry protocols. The Serb's first match came at the Dubai Tennis Championship, where an early loss forced him to hand over the World No. 1 crown to Daniil Medvedev.

The former World No. 1 also had to miss trips to the Sunshine Double in Indian Wells and Miami, losing out on a potential 2000 ranking points. Djokovic's first clay match resulted in a loss against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina with more service breaks than he had ever faced in a two-set encounter.

The Serbia Open in Belgrade saw the World No. 8 come into form, only to lose to Andrey Rublev in the final in front of his home fans with a bagel to boot. At the Italian Open after that, however, Djokovic saw his first sight of silverware, beating Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final to bring his season back.

Just when it looked like he was coming into his own, the defending champion suffered a rather shocking loss against Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals of the French Open, a loss that brought back painful memories of past drubbings on clay at the hands of the Spaniard.

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Novak Djokovic won a Grand Slam despite playing in only two Majors in 2022, a testament to his greatness

Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon 2022

Only Wimbledon helped Novak Djokovic save face, as he knocked out Nick Kyrgios in his seventh match to win his 21st Grand Slam title and move one step closer to matching Nadal in the Slam race. But once again, just as he was picking up steam, vaccine mandates ruined the 35-year-old's run, keeping him out of the entire North American hardcourt swing.

With the Canadian Open, the Cincinnati Open and the US Open in the mix, the 21-time Grand Slam champion had to lose out on 4,000 ranking points minimum, denting his chances of regaining the top spot.

This is precisely where his often-talked-about mental strength helped Djokovic. A lesser champion would have shrugged off the year as a minor blip and decided to come back stronger next season. Not the Serb.

Unlike previous years, the World No. 8 enrolled at the Tel Aviv Open and the Astana Open, clearing out the field in both events to win two titles back-to-back. From there, the Serb moved on to the Paris Masters, where he was the defending champion once again.

With 1,000 points on the line, the former World No. 1 strolled his way into the final, cutting down potential upsetters like Lorenzo Musetti and Stefanos Tsitsipas with nonchalance. Winning in Paris would have been the cherry on top, but it was sadly not meant to be. After taking the opening set, the 35-year-old was stopped in his tracks by Holger Rune, losing in the final of a Masters 1000 tournament for the first time in his career.

Regardless, the Serb ensured that he would have qualified for the ATP Finals even without the exemption and that he would have finished the year in the Top-8, a phenomenal feat considering all the ranking points he has had to forego without as much as a fight.

In light of all that, the 21-time Grand Slam champion has given his fans a season to remember, even if it doesn't appear so on the surface. As much as his detractors can remember it all they want for his missteps and controversies off the court, Novak Djokovic the tennis player very much remains a force to be reckoned with. As he has demonstrated so eloquently, he can get it done far more efficiently than almost any other player on planet earth.