Dominant Djokovic Deserves Sports World's Spotlight, but Remains in Shadows

We're in a sports world of dynasties and domination. Last year's mega-figures were American Pharoah, Jordan Spieth and Serena Williams. The Golden State Warriors have taken up the majority of NBA headlines for 18 months now.

But the thing is, the most dominant force in sports somehow doesn't get into the discussion. Novak Djokovic has been hidden behind Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal his entire career, was blocked last year in talk about Serena and the Grand Slam. These past two weeks, he has continued his anonymous run while you were sleeping (U.S. time).

Two days after crushing Federer in a semifinal, Djokovic beat Andy Murray on Sunday 6-1, 7-5, 7-6 (7-3) to win the Australian Open. It was his third major title in a row, his fourth in the past five. Put it this way: Golden State was 43-4 after Saturday's win over the Philadelphia 76ers. Djokovic is 34-1 in the past year in the majors. He has won 21 straight major matches.

"I'm sure in the future, you're going to have more opportunities to fight for this trophy,'' Djokovic told Murray, consoling him in his post-match speech on ESPN.

Well sure. Someone has to be the other guy on the court when Djokovic wins.

For tennis, this would have been a period of disaster, if not for Djokovic. The tournament was overrun by reports of a match-fixing scandal that allegedly includes at least one un-named major champion. Djokovic said during the tournament that years ago he was offered $200,000 to throw a match for gamblers.

Murray, knowing that all major champions' names were muddied, demanded to know which players were involved and said he hoped the public disgrace would force the sport's governing bodies to do something.

Tennis has been trying to cover up its gambling problem.

On top of that, Nadal's body is falling apart. Federer, at 34, has won just one major in six years. And even Serena, also 34, looked old and slow for the first time in losing to Angelique Kerber in the final. Meanwhile, the supposedly up-and-coming youngsters in the game aren't arriving soon.

But along comes Djokovic as the new face and personality of dominance in the sport.

Can Djokovic save tennis from the fixing scandal?

He has all the charisma and talent that every sport looks for in its leaders. But it's hard to say if his aura is big enough. His emergence into the mainstream might just now be starting.

Or, maybe not. He was not big enough to wipe out the talk of match-fixing.

He has to be the answer. There are no others. That's a little unfair to Serena, who figures to catch Steffi Graf's record of 22 majors some time this year. But her dominance is nothing new; it's already factored in.

Djokovic has his chance for historical dominance this year, and that should resonate. Is it too early to talk about the Golden Slam? Not the way he's playing.

He could do something Federer, Nadal and Williams have never done: win all four majors and an Olympic gold medal all in the same year. Djokovic is moving up the charts of history so fast. With 11 major titles now, he tied Bjorn Borg. He's three behind Nadal and Pete Sampras, six behind Federer's record.

Aaron Favila/Associated Press

The problem for Djokovic, though, is the shadows of Federer and Nadal. It would take the Golden Slam for most people to even realize that Djokovic is actually better than both of them now. It's not going to be easy for Djokovic to capture the attention of the general sports public, not in the U.S., anyway.

There are plenty of people who think John McEnroe is still the best American player. (Come to think of it, maybe...)

And for some strange reason, it took a while even for tennis to warm up to Djokovic. He annoyed thin-skinned players with his impersonations of them. Andy Roddick ripped into him, turned a U.S. Open crowd against him and nearly got into a fight with him in the locker room. Federer didn't like him.

And he always seemed to be faking injuries and sickness when he was losing, only to make a miracle recovery and win.

I was at an Australian Open one year when Djokovic got sick during a match. Afterward, someone asked his opponent, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, when he noticed something was wrong with Djokovic. 

We expected Tsonga to say, "Early in the second set." Instead,  he said, "Five years ago."

I never saw him in a negative light, though. In fact, one of my favorite things to do at Wimbledon is to watch Djokovic on the practice courts. One day, he's having a contest to see who can bounce the ball longer on the side of the racquet. The next day, he's playing Hacky Sack.

One day, he had a junior player on the court and they played one point for a bet. Djokovic lost. He dropped and did pushups.

One time, he played a practice tiebreaker with Robin Soderling. Djokovic threw his racquet across several courts in fake anger. And when Djokovic won a tiebreaker, Soderling crumpled up a small bill and threw it at Djokovic, who unraveled it, kissed it, looked at me and said, "My work is done here.''

The guy has a personality unlike any other player. That should be able to sell.

He doesn't do the impressions anymore or fake injuries. In fact, he was so rock solid Sunday that it's unclear if he ever broke a sweat. He dominated Murray in the first set the same way he dominated Federer in the first two sets in the semis, the same way he dominated Nadal a few weeks ago. It was complete destruction, running down everything and hitting winners from all angles.

Murray seemed to be working three times as hard as Djokovic just to stay alive in the second set. You know the noise an old man makes when he sits down? Throughout most of the set, Murray made that noise perpetually while running for shots, hitting the ball, anything. It was a nonstop groan.

Murray got emotional after the match, directing his speech to his wife, Kim Sears, back home, who could have their baby any day. Meanwhile, her father, at the Australian Open, had to be rushed to the hospital during the tournament.

During his speech, Murray said, nearly crying, "You've been a legend the last two weeks. Thank you so much for all your support. And I'll be on the next flight home.''

Murray had distractions, but it didn't change the match. Djokovic is just too good, levels above even the historical greats still playing the game. He still needs to win his first French Open, and then has a summer for the Golden Slam.

He is the most dominant force in sports. And one day the world might notice.