Novak Djokovic is one of the fittest players on the Tour. Not only as a tennis player, but the 21-time Grand Slam champion is also a role model for athletes globally. Djokovic made a big change to his diet in 2010. After tests found that he suffered from gluten tolerance, Djokovic became completely vegan which further improved his fitness.
The constant regulation of his diet was reflected in his performances. From 2010 to 2020, Djokovic won 16 of the 40 Grand Slams. Rising to World No. 1, he broke and created new records on the Tour as well making him a contender in the GOAT debate for decades to come. Analysts and experts credited his fitness to the improved performances as despite the packed schedule he managed to thrive.
With no fixed time for a tennis match, it all comes down to physicality on who comes out on the top. As the famous quote attributed to Boris Becker, “The fifth set is not about tennis, it’s about nerves.” Djokovic has proven this quote correct on numerous occasions with physical supremacy.
Keeping his athleticism in mind, he has been often compared to great athletes in other sports as well. In a recent study conducted by Marca, some of the top athletes were compared on how much time they would take to run 100 meters. While Usain Bolt‘s record of 9.58 seconds remains unmatched, Djokovic was found a tad faster than football star Erling Haaland. Djokovic was found to have a top speed of 36.02 km/hr while Haaland’s was calculated at 36 km/hr.
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Novak Djokovic head and shoulders above Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal
The results were formed on the best result ever achieved by the athletes. Djokovic was found to be the fastest tennis player when the data is available. Be it constantly running to and fro from baseline to the net or sprinting to the edge of the court to continue or at times win the point, tennis is one of the most demanding sports.
Djokovic was ranked 5th on the list with Bolt in the top spot. Following him was Kylian Mbappe whose peak speed was recorded at 38.02 km/hr. In third place, legendary rugby player Jonah Lomu was placed with his best speed record of 37.44 km/hr. NFL player Tyreek Hill was 4th with the highest speed of 37.2 km/hr.
When it came to tennis players, Djokovic was at the top. Andy Murray was second with 34.87 km/hr as his top speed. Aussie great Lleyton Hewitt occupied third place with a top speed of 31.24 km/hr. Rafael Nadal was ranked 12th on the list with his best-ever speed recorded at 26.84 km/hr while Roger Federer was found further below on the 17th spot with 26.03 as his best-ever speed.
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