Novak Djokovic's Statement

Novak Djokovic has shut down his critics about his abilities of becoming World No. 1 over the last 10 days.

The Serb has claimed his third successive title in Indian Wells by defeating both Roger Federer (for the third consecutive time) and Rafael Nadal.

In the new ranking system released today, Nadal is still World No. 1, but there is no question that Djokovic is the current World No. 1 so far this season.

Moreover, The Australian Open champion has just passed Roger Federer as World No. 2.

All changed the day Djokovic won the Davis Cup last December for Serbia.

Since that time, he has won 20 successive matches: two in Davis Cup, seven in Melbourne for his second career Grand Slam, five in Dubai, and six at Indian Wells.

By the way, Nole lost only four sets at the Indian Wells Masters, which is stunning.

It's always very interesting to witness the evolution of a player and the way he accumulates victories and confidence.

We have the feeling nobody can beat him, that he will find a way to win the match even if the score is not in his favor.

The 23 year-old from Belgrade lives today with the feeling of being invincible, which is unusual for a tennis champion if they are not called Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal.

Djoker is on the verge of joining them both.

The race is now clearly between Nadal, Djokovic, Federer, and the rest of the world, while at the start of the season it still was only Nadal and Federer.

I was stunned by his defensive game, which is now as good as Nadal's on hard court, as well as his return game, which is the best in the world at the moment.

We saw, many times against Rafa, rallies where he was dominated but also found ways to change the course of it with his defensive game and his backhand down the line. That's where you know you can beat a player like Nadal.

Djokovic has now the ability to return a lot of balls. He will make you play extra shots in order to force the error from you.

Nole's opponents don't have time to breathe on their service game. They are in trouble of losing it each time they serve, which makes them crazy.

Moreover, Novak used to make tons of unforced errors on the forehand side, which is not the case any more, since the forehand has become as good as the backhand.

He now gives the impression he will win a point wherever he stands on the court.

One question can now stand on our minds: For how long will Djokovic play at this level?
Next stop for the men's tour is Key Biscayne.

I would not be surprised if he was upset in the early stages of the tournament due to the amount of efforts given in the California desert.

He also seemed to suffer from the right knee on several occasions this weekend.
If that were to happen, we should not count this upset as significant.

However, Rafa will be well aware of who will be his No. 1 threat on clay this season.
Nadal have found his main rival for the next couple of months.

We will see the first answers in Monte Carlo starting on April 10.

As for Nadal, he was back on tour after being upset by David Ferrer in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open.

The way he beat Juan Martin Del Potro in the semifinals of Indian Wells suggests he is almost back at his best.

Many would have noticed his problems with the serve, which is something he will work on very hard over the next days.

Even more, Nadal, who had never lost to Djokovic in finals previously, will think twice as to how to beat the Djoker. That will increase his will to keep improving.

There's also another question rising: How will Djokovic compete against Nadal in a best-of-five sets format?

We all know the Mallorcan will be fit to compete for as long as it takes, while Djokovic has had his breathing problems over the past couple of years.

It could also become a factor in long marathon matches on clay.

Nadal will be back at his best for the clay season, which promises numerous great battles against the Serb.

What about Federer? The Swiss showed improvements in his game, but why is he still having his gaps of concentration?

After all, he did lead Nole for a brief period of time during his semifinal match. At one-set all and two games-all in the third, he was leading 40-15 on serve.

Then all of a sudden, Federer was gone like smoke! As if he was the victim of a magician who tricked him several times.

The concentration issue must be solved quickly, or we will have to admit it's the end of the Federer era.

I think we may have to wait until Wimbledon to see if one of the greatest players of all time is still able to win his favorite Grand Slam.