Djokovic stomps on Nadal, goes to No. 1

WIMBLEDON, England -- The numbers declare it. Novak Djokovic verified it. At the moment, he's the best men's tennis player in the world.

A day before his name would rise to the top of the ATP standings, Djokovic Sunday overtook on the grass court at Wimbledon the talent he Monday will overtake in the rankings, Rafael Nadal.

Nadal had won the previous two Wimbledons he entered, and 20 straight matches, but Djokovic seemed a step faster and a shot ahead in a 6-4, 6-1, 1-6, 6-3 victory on the historic Centre Court.

"Just an incredible feeling that I'll never forget," Djokovic said. "The best day of my tennis career. I will not stop, even though I achieved the two biggest things in my life in three days.''

He achieved it before a crowd that included the president of his nation, Serbia, Boris Tadic, who among others has given Djokovic credit for changing the way the world views the country after the war against Croatia. Djokovic was a boy in the early 1990s when NATO bombs fell on Belgrade, and he had to flee the tennis courts for shelters. "Those were tough days,'' he recalled. "But I kept going.''

Five times he had faced Nadal or Roger Federer in Grand Slam events, including last summer's U.S. Open final against Nadal, and five times he had lost. Until Sunday.

"It did feel a little bit frustrating,'' said Djokovic, who at 24 is a year younger than Nadal. "But it's a process of learning.''

What Nadal, now No. 2 in the rankings, learned Sunday was that Djokovic could play the game that made Rafa a 10-time majors winner, dashing about and keeping up the pressure.

Djokovic had beaten Nadal four times this year, at Indian Wells, Miami, Rome and Madrid, but this was different. This was the tournament Djokovic said he first watched on TV as a 4-year-old and "dreamed of winning.''

He added, "I think I am still sleeping, having this dream.''

What he had was an advantage. "When one player beat you five times is because today my game don't bother him a lot,'' Nadal, a Spaniard, said in his passable English.

He had looked as bewildered by Djokovic as most people have looked against Nadal. "He's playing better at every level,'' Nadal said. "I only lose matches this year against him. When I was 100 percent to play, I lost against him five times. The rest of the year, I won almost every match . . . I didn't play well at the big moments . . . He played better than me. For that reason, he is champion here.''

Djokovic won the Australian Open in January for the second time. Then Nadal, a genius on clay, took the next major, the French Open, a sixth time. He was a slight favorite, but Djokovic -- called "The Joker'' as much for his mimicry as for his name -- controlled play except for the third set.

"He has a good backhand,'' Nadal said of Djokovic, "very good forehand, good serve. His movements probably are [some] of the best in the world in this moment.''

Djokovic had a reputation as temperamental and letting matches get away. He seemed to always have an excuse, a sore toe maybe, or harassment by fans at Flushing Meadows.

"After I won my first Slam, I started facing feelings and situations I never had before,'' he said. "I would lie to you if I didn't have my doubts. I had my doubts. I had difficult crisis times where I didn't know if I could make it, because the first two guys were so dominant.''

But this year, Djokovic was dominant. He won 41 straight matches; then, after a loss to Federer in the French Open semifinals, he has won seven straight.

"Any athlete dreams of being No. 1 in the world,'' Djokovic said. "So finally, when you do it and when you know you're the best, it's just an amazing achievement.''