Novak Djokovic: Star Must Reassert Dominance with Deep Run at US Open 2012

Ever since this year's Australian Open, the story of Novak Djokovic's life on the court can be summed up with one word.

Inconsistency.

There have been moderate successes followed by big disappointments. Ever since that fateful win in Melbourne in January, there have been abundant questions, most of which carry negative connotations.

Now, with one final chance to seize a major title in 2012, the biggest question is whether or not Novak Djokovic actually stands a chance of doing it.

A few months ago, the answer would have been a resounding yes. A few months ago, when Djokovic defeated Rafael Nadal in the Australian Open final, he needed just one more victory in a major tournament to register a sweep of the last four Grand Slams. All he needed was a win at Roland Garros.

That is where it all seemed to go wrong.

In the French Open final—in fact, the first time he'd ever advanced to the French Open final—Djokovic lost to Rafael Nadal after beating him in three straight Grand Slam finals.

That loss wasn't necessarily about succumbing to the pressure; it was about succumbing to a player who has firmly established Roland Garros as his personal kingdom.

Losing to Nadal in the French Open final was a disappointment, and it ruined Djokovic's own opportunity to make history, but it wasn't a life-shattering blow. 

The next loss was, sort of.

This time, Djokovic was facing another legend—the master of the grass court—and he succumbed once again. This time, it was in the semifinals at Wimbledon against eventual winner Roger Federer.

One month later, Djokovic would suffer another resounding loss to Andy Murray in the Olympic semifinals, and missed out on an opportunity to face Federer in the gold-medal match.

Even the last few weeks have been filled with inconsistencies. After falling in the Olympic semifinals, he came back to defend his Rogers Cup title about a week later. However, this week, he stumbled badly in Cincinnati and fell in the final to Federer by a score of 6-0, 7-6 (7).

Suddenly, only one Grand Slam remains, which means that Djokovic has only one more chance to prove that his string of three consecutive major wins wasn't a fluke. He needs this U.S. Open win. This is his most important title to defend, if only because a win here would mean shaking off the demons, at least until next January.

If he loses, the next several months are going to be long. There are going to be a lot more questions, much like those Djokovic has faced ever since falling at the hands of Nadal in June.

With every loss, the pressure has been mounting, and another loss at the U.S. Open—especially if it comes at the hands of Federer or Murray—would bring that pressure to an all-time high.

In the last two or three months, Nadal, Federer and even Murray have all proven that they are still on top of their game. Djokovic hasn't, and he's running out of time to keep up with them.