If Novak Djokovic wins his fourth consecutive Slam, not only will he achieve a career Slam, but also have won four consecutive Slams, he’ll have beaten the same opponent in all four finals.  The last time a male player won four consecutive Slams was the last time someone won a calendar Slam, and that was in 1969 when Rod Laver won the second of his two Grand Slams.

While Djokovic looked awfully good when he claimed the Australian Open title, his matches in the French did not lead one to believe he could capture the one title that has eluded him.  Indeed, there was some thought that he might not even make the finals.  With a five set workout from Andreas Seppi and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, some hoped that Roger Federer, who has had a positive record over Djokovic, could topple him again.

But if you watched the Tsonga match, especially the end, you would have seen Djokovic getting into a good rhythm.  So despite being pushed to 5, he was starting to regain the kind of patience and movement he’ll need to win the title.  This was further reinforced in his 64, 75, 63 victory over Roger Federer where he committed far fewer errors in blustery conditions.  Federer’s best performance has always been indoors where the speed of the court, the lack of weather conditions enhance Federer’s precise, but high-risk game.  Federer knew he could try to be more patient against Djokovic and play his game, but he knew he would come second in that battle, so he clung to his usual strategy of hitting hard and hoped that either the weather would cooperate or that the balls would magically land in.  Djokovic, meanwhile, was keeping his shot count high to entice Federer into taking another errant risky shot.

As the US Open has been postponed for several years now, there is a chance the French might get delayed due to weather.

In the meanwhile, the two best players square off.  Nadal will be favored because he’s playing very well and this is his best surface.  However, Djokovic has shown that he can hang with Nadal and if it’s close, that he has the mental fortitude to beat him.