Tennis: Novak Djokovic steps up to dominate in 2011

The 24-year-old Serb won three of the four Grand Slams titles lifted seven other trophies and wrested the No. 1 ranking from Rafael Nadal. His 70-6 record included a staggering 41-match winning streak to begin the season. Djokovic eventually fell one short of matching John McEnroes record of 42 straight wins to begin the 1985 season. Despite that, theAmerican great said the tougher competition and greater athleticism in todays game made the Serbs feat more impressive. The run also included four wins over Nadal, all in finals. Two of them came on the Spaniards favorite clay surface.Djokovic, who won the Australian Open early in the season, finally lost in June when Roger Federer prevailed in the French Open semifinals. But the Serb quickly picked himself up and swept the Wimbledon and U.S. Open titles.In New York, Federer seemed certain to repeat his Roland Garros success. He held two match points on serve in the fifth set of their semifinal match, but Djokovic saved both — the first with a blistering forehand return winner that was one of the years most memorable moments.It was also the perfect demonstration of the belief that Djokovic says was the key to his dramatic improvement in 2011 after a three-year gap since his first Grand Slam title in 2008. While Djokovics confidence soared, Nadals seemed to drain away a little more with each loss.His three titles for the season was his worst haul since 2004, and after months of complaining about the hectic calendar, Nadal left the season-ending ATP World Tour Finals stating that he had a little bit less passion for the game.Spains Davis Cup win — their fifth since 2000 — at least provided a silver lining to a difficult season, but Nadal said dropping the team competition from his schedule in 2012 would be part of his mission to turn around his fortunes.When Djokovics phenomenal season finally took its toll on his body — four of his six losses for the year came after the U.S. Open — it wasnt Nadal who took advantage but Federer and Andy Murray.Murray, who spent the whole season in the top four but still ended it without a first Grand Slam, won three straight titles in Asia while Federer ended the season with a 17-match winning streak which culminated in a record sixth title at the year-end championships in London.