Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic won the French open Sunday, securing his 23rd Grand Slam title—more than any other men’s tennis player, surpassing the record he previously shared with longtime rival Rafael Nadal.
Djokovic, 36, beat Casper Ruud, 24, an up-and-coming Norwegian tennis star, in three sets in the final round of the French Open.
The Serbian star won 7-6, 6-3, 7-5.
Nadal, who missed the French open due to a hip injury, took to Twitter Sunday to congratulate Djokovic on surpassing their previously shared record saying, “23 is a number that just a few years back was imposible [sic]
$27.1 million. That’s how much Djokovic made in on- and off-court earnings from August 2021 to August 2022, according to Forbes’ calculations. He was the world’s fifth-highest paid tennis star over that period, behind behind endorsement powerhouse Roger Federer ($90 million), Naomi Osaka ($56.2 million), Serena Williams ($35.1 million) and Rafael Nadal ($31.4 million).
Djokovic has not made Forbes’ list of the top 50 highest-paid athletes since 2021, when he ranked 46th, with $34.5 million in earnings.
36-year-old Djokovic has fought alongside Federer and Nadal for years, at one point tying the other two players in Grand Slam titles. However, Djokovic missed several competitions after announcing earlier in the pandemic he was not vaccinated against the coronavirus. Last year, he was deported from Australia ahead of the Australian Open due to the country’s strict vaccine requirements for foreign travelers, and he skipped the U.S. Open due to the United States’ vaccine rules. He urged tournaments to change their requirements, but also said in an interview with the BBC that he was willing to forego potential future tournament wins, saying it was “the price I’m willing to pay.”
3 French Opens, 23 Grand Slams, $510 Million: Novak Djokovic’s Record-Breaking Career By The Numbers (Forbes)
Djokovic’s Sponsors Stick By Him Or Stay Silent—But He Could Lose Millions From Missing Grand Slams (Forbes)
CORRECTION (6/11): This article has been updated to note that Djokovic shared a Grand Slam record with Rafael Nadal before his win Sunday.
