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When Seles and Djokovic Shocked The Tennis World
8 Comments · Posted by Scoop Malinowski in Articles, Scoop
By Scoop Malinowski
Monica Seles and Novak Djokovic both shocked the tennis world very early in their careers but it was not their first Grand Slam titles, there were stunning incidents before the actual triumphs that were pivotal moments which laid the foundation for their epic historic careers.
For Seles, her jaw dropping moments came at the end of the first set of the 1990 French Open final vs Steffi Graf. For Seles, it was her first Grand Slam final, for the dominant veteran Graf it was her 13th Grand final (she had won 9). Graf took command in the first set tiebreaker vs Seles and lead the 17 year old 5-0 and 6-2. Then all the sudden Seles came alive and dominated Graf by winning six straight points to steal the tiebreaker 8-6. Obviously stunned by the barrage of Seles courage, shot-making and magical tennis, Graf got rolled in the second set 46. Of course that amazing win by Seles change the course of tennis history and eventually Seles dethroned Graf from the no. 1 ranking.
Novak Djokovic also performed a similar magic act on the tennis court at a young age, it happened at the 2007 Canadian Open in Montreal against Roger Federer in the final. In the first set the 20-year old saved seven set points in the first set vs Federer, escaping a love-40 triple set point on Federer’s serve and ended up winning the first set tiebreaker. At that point in time, Federer was the dominant world no. 1 and had won eleven Grand Slam titles, including seven of the last nine Grand Slams. Djokovic subsequently beat Federer that day in three sets for his first ever Masters 1000 title (his first Grand Slam came the next January in Australia).
Somehow Djokovic, like Seles vs Graf seventeen years earlier, had the unbreakable self belief that they could beat anyone from any position or any deficit. And they actually did it. These history changing moments are very rare in pro tennis and are under-celebrated and under-hyped by the media.
In the final complete analysis, these are the precise moments when Seles and Djokovic established their tennis supremacy that later changed tennis history.
Steve · February 1, 2025 at 9:29 am
Not shocking but Montpellier gave Gasquet a very nice send-off at his quasi-home tournament. It’s in French but some nice moments at the end.
https://youtu.be/qedmdfqlk3w?si=13ud33WT9HOIAnlC
The French Open will be his last pro tourny.
Scoop Malinowski · February 1, 2025 at 6:30 pm
Will it be his last tournament even if he wins the title? )
Todd Shea Robinson · February 7, 2025 at 11:27 pm
Great pivotal moments in a young player’s career that can be so crucial to the mental side of the game, subsequently…massive confidence boosts! Nice post….
Scoop Malinowski · February 8, 2025 at 8:09 am
Todd, totally career changing points, under the most pressure, tennis is the toughest sport to escape the guillotine but Seles and Djokovic showed how it’s done. Call it James Bond tennis if you will.
Todd Shea Robinson · February 8, 2025 at 4:11 pm
Djoker 2010 USO SF erasing Fed’s 2 match pts…..another HUGE moment for him.
Scoop Malinowski · February 8, 2025 at 6:13 pm
Yes and it was made possible by the Montreal final. Match points didn’t scare Novak, nor did triple set point down on Federer’s serve. That shook up Federer’s confidence or even irreparably damaged it. Seles did irreparable damage to Graf’s psyche too. I think Carlos and Medvedev and Djokovic all did irreparable damage to Tsitsipas confidence too.
Denim Fedele · February 10, 2025 at 9:09 am
Hey Scoop, it’s me.
This article was unexpected. Many tennis fans mention Seles and Djokovic everyday for their achievements, but I never thought about this analogy (Seles in 1990 and Djokovic in 2007).
I’ve been a tennis fan for many years, but your articles make me feel like an amateur. It’s always a pleasure to read them (unlike official newspapers who spread fake news or boring facts)
Scoop Malinowski · February 10, 2025 at 9:38 am
Thanks Den, yes it’s so easy to forget these minute but critically important details of the careers of Djokovic and Seles. The media should be celebrating these incredible feats by Seles and Djokovic but they fell asleep at the wheel.