Can Novak Djokovic win the Golden Slam?

What is a Golden Slam?

It is when a tennis player wins all four grand slam titles in a single year plus the Olympic Gold Medal.

It is only possible every  four years and has only been accomplished once: Steffi Graf won the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open in 1988 then went on to take the gold medal at the Olympic Games in Souel, South Korea.

The only players who can possibly accomplish this feat this year are Novak Djokovic and Victoria Azarenka who won Australian Open singles titles last week.

Okay, as far as Azarenka goes, not going to happen.

As far as Djokovic goes, I think he’s got as good a shot as anyone ever has. He won three of the slams last year in emphatic fashion and showed all kinds of heart in defeating Rafael Nadal in a classic five-set final on Sunday.

Next up is the French Open. This is Djokovic’s biggest hurdle. He’s never won there or even made the final. Last year, he was riding a 45-match winning streak when Roger Federer beat him in the semifinals in Paris.

Djokovoic, however, had beaten six-time French Open champ Nadal twice in the weeks leading up to Paris in clay court tournaments and has proven himself to be capable of winning in Paris.

Wimbledon would be next and Djokoic has already proven he can win there. Later in the summer, the Olympic Games in London will be held at the same location: Wimbledon. No reason for him not to be able to win there again. (At the 2008 Olympics in China, he won the bronze medal).

The last hurdle would be the US Open at the end of the summer. Djokovic came within once point of losing in the semifinals to Federer but managed to win.

He showed all kinds of confidence and heart that day in Flushing Meadows and again in Australia on Sunday. That’s why I think Djokovic has a realistic chance of completing the Golden Slam provided he stays healthy and injury free.

He makes no secret of his ambitions.

“The Grand Slam tournaments and the Olympic Games are my priority this year,” Djokovic told the Politika daily in an interview published Tuesday. “Honestly probably Roland Garros is my number one priority but my ambition is unchanged and I’d like to win all tournaments I play in.”