Novak Djokovic's Improvement and Rise to No. 1

Nearly anybody who has heard of tennis has heard of Novak Djokovic. The Serb went from being ranked No. 3 in the world at the end of the year for four successive years to capturing No. 1 and adding two more Grand Slams to his name. Not just that, but he broke the all-time winning streak in 2011 and has yet to lose more than once this year.

Many are quick to say he is the next rising legend and will go on to do bigger and better things, given what he has achieved just this year.

But, just how good is this guy? Sure, he beat Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer more times than we are accustomed to seeing anybody do, but what is he doing differently? His progress and improvement are the true ideas to tackle when considering his rapid ascension to the temporary throne of men's tennis.

I have comprised a time line of every match where Djokovic was even remotely challenged, and I will start from the end of 2010:

U.S. Open 1st Round: Djokovic def. Viktor Troicki 6–3, 3–6, 2–6, 7–5, 6–3

He was down a break in the fourth and the venue was blistering hot, a characteristic Novak still has not proven himself to be in control of yet.

After this match, he went on to play Phillipp Petzschner, James Blake, Mardy Fish and Gaël Monfils, beating each of them in straight sets. But as much as I am a fan of all of those players (except one of them), Novak really shouldn't have lost to any of those guys. He did what he was supposed to and made it to the Final Four.

U.S. Open Semifinals: Djokovic def. Federer 5–7, 6–1, 5–7, 6–2, 7–5

The fact that Roger fell apart after winning the first and third sets was quite bizarre, but Novak played well anyway. Most of the sets that these two played wound up ending as 7-5 or 7-6, and to see Roger win nearly all of the tight ones was nothing new.

When I was watching this match, and when Djokovic had his first match point to fight off, he kept hitting a ridiculous aggressive shot over and over, and Roger's defense could've been the end of the match right then and there. I could not believe that Novak would keep pounding away at the ball and take such big cuts, especially the forehand swinging volley, which he does not hit often. It was this very aggressive and persistent ground stroke game that got him to where he currently is.

U.S. Open Final: Nadal def. Djokovic 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-2

Regardless of how badly Rafa wanted his career Grand Slam, Djokovic did not play below his level at all. A few things did not go his way, and that was ultimately the reason he went down two sets to one.

After this, Djokovic went on to play Roger Federer twice and Rafael Nadal once more. He lost six straight sets to the top two players in the world at the time.

Davis Cup Final: Serbia def. France 3-2

I still am unsure of why this tie was the turning point in Novak's head, especially since he beat people he should have and since it was Troicki that won the decisive rubber.

Novak approached the game with a new mindset, and that was using his fitness, quickness and consistency to develop a more aggressive game on the court.

Australian Open 2nd Round: Djokovic def. Dodig 7–5, 6–7, 6–0, 6–2

This match was quite odd—both players refused to miss shots, and they played long baseline points until one hit a winner or an error. Novak got extremely mad after losing the second set, and used that anger to cruise through the final two sets. However, he definitely was not playing out-of-his-mind great, and it was a bit shocking to see him do so well in the following rounds.

Australian Open Semifinal and Final: Djokovic def. Federer 7-6, 7-5, 6-4, and Murray 6-4, 6-2, 6-3, respectively

Djokovic's straight-set win over Roger definitely had to do with the fact that the Swiss had lost his last match to Novak. But the Serb's win over Murray was typical of his other matches against the Scot: long baseline rallies with neither player doing too much. Add to that the fact Murray was playing in a Grand Slam final and you have yourself an easy beat-down.

His serve was still not perfect when he won the Australian Open, nor did he play that "very aggressive" style of play yet, but his game matured quickly soon after.

Djokovic def. Federer and Nadal More Times: In the BNP Paribas Open and in Miami, Djokovic dominated the field, although he was challenged by Roger in California and Nadal in Florida.

The Sony Ericsson Open final was one of the closest matches Novak was a part of this year.

Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open: Djokovic def. Ferrer 6–4, 4–6, 6–3, and Thomaz Bellucci 4–6, 6–4, 6–1, respectively

These matches were very interesting. Nole faced two opponents playing perhaps the best tennis of their careers, and they nearly outplayed the giant from the baseline in lengthy rallies.

Internazionali BNL d'Italia: Djokovic def. Murray 6-1, 3-6, 7-6

Andy Murray was right when he said this match should have been the end of the Serb's winning streak. Murray had no problem playing long rallies with his rival, and with the recent trend of baseline players challenging Novak, one must think that is shockingly a way to beat the man.

French Open: Del Potro takes a set off of Nole / Federer beats the almighty Serb

That second set was spectacular: Del Potro faced deuce or break points in nearly every service game, yet still held every time. He saw Novak guarding his backhand side too much on the returns and served to the forehand to save break points numerous times.

Meanwhile, Federer demonstrated great patience and quickness while able to stay in points with his newest rival. Serving well played a big role, as did forehand and backhand crosscourt exchanges.

Wimbledon: Djokovic drops sets against Baghdatis, Tomic, Tsonga and Nadal

Each of these players did something differently to earn a set: Marcos played Novak's baseline game and beat him at it for a little while; Bernard gave the "Djoker" low slices and different looks during points, which is perhaps the best thing to do to challenge him. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga got into a tiebreak and took his chances and Rafa did what he always does—turn his level up when he is losing, but it wasn't enough to win.

How Does Anybody Beat Novak Djokovic?

It truly depends on the player, but an overall game of consistency and/or aggression is key.

A player must play at least 80 percent of balls to his backhand and play closer to the lines than they normally do. It is important to serve primarily to his forehand on the deuce side, first and second serve. Also, one should mix up serving sharp angles to the backhand and sliders to the forehand on the ad side for first serves, while hitting big kick serves as second or first serves on occasion. Body serves would also be highly effective.

For Roger, he must hit to Novak's backhand time and time again and approach the net after hitting to his backhand, but covering crosscourt much more than he typically likes to and challenge Nole to hit down-the-line backhand winners. Also, Roger constantly hits winners on Novak when he runs for a forehand and unexpectedly powers the ball down the line.

For Rafa, he must hit more forehands down-the-line and play closer to the lines in general. He cannot hit run-around inside-out forehands if they do not physically take Novak way off the court. He must continue to hit his backhand crosscourt with authority and come to net more. I have no doubt that he will begin to beat Novak occasionally in the near future.

As for Murray, Soderling and any other dark horse, they must hit the ball with more authority than usual because they truly have nothing to lose against a guy who is allegedly "unbeatable."

Of course, it is not easy to beat this man, but sooner or later, he will start to lose much more and people will be able to dig into his game. If you can get Novak to throw his racket during a match (which happens often), you can beat the No. 1 player in the world as well.