French Open 2012: Win Would Cement Novak Djokovic's Place in History

Novak Djokovic is already ranked the No. 1 player in the world, but a win in the French Open finals could move him up the list of the greatest tennis players of all time.

Winning on Sunday will be no easy task. His opponent, Rafael Nadal, has been almost flawless on the clay of Roland Garros. In seven career appearances in the French Open, Nadal has only lost one match, winning the entire tournament six times, tied for the most of all time.

This year has been no different, as the Spanish native has yet to lose a single set. Players have seemed to give up once he takes the early lead.

Djokovic will not go down as easily. He knows how to win, defeating Nadal in the last three Grand Slam finals. However, getting a win on clay will be a different story.

He will need to avoid being aggressive at the net, and let his opponent be the one who makes mistakes.

To this point in his career, the French Open is the only Grand Slam title that has eluded the Serbian. Getting this final piece would put him in some elite company.

Pete Sampras is second all time with 14 titles, but he was never able to win the French Open. For all of his skill, Bjorn Borg could never win either the Australian Open or U.S. Open.

In the open era, only Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andre Agassi and Rod Laver have been able to win each of the four major championships. More impressively, Laver was able to win each of them in a single calender year.

Djokovic could join that list of one. He has already won three consecutive titles and is looking for his fourth, all against Nadal.

At only 25, there is little reason to believe he will not add to his five career slams.

Djokovic has improved mightily over the past couple of years, and in that time has been downright dominant. In his last match, he easily handled one of the best of all time in Federer. 

With one more win, it will be time to put the Djoker in that same conversation.