NEW YORK — Novak Djokovic’s 64-2 record in 2011 has earned him a record amount of prize money.
Djokovic’s U.S. Open championship — his third Grand Slam title of the year — pushed his earnings past $10.6 million, more than anyone ever took home during a full season of men’s tennis, according to the ATP World Tour.
The only other men to come close were Rafael Nadal in 2010 and Roger Federer in 2007; they completed those years with a little less than $10.2 million.
After beating Nadal in the U.S. Open final Monday, Djokovic received a check for $2.3 million: $1.8 million for winning the tournament, plus a $500,000 bonus for finishing second in the U.S. Open Series standings, which takes into account results at hard- court tuneup tournaments.
As impressive as Djokovic’s overall record is, what’s even more indicative of exactly how well he’s playing is that he is 10-1 against Nadal and Federer this season.
John McEnroe called Djokovic’s success in 2011 “the greatest year in the history of our sport, there’s no doubt about it.”
McEnroe, by the way, went 82-3 in 1984.
TV rating up from last year.
The U.S. Open men’s final’s television rating is up from last year.
Djokovic’s four-set victory over Nadal on CBS earned an overnight rating of 2.6 and a 6 share. That’s up 18 percent from a 2. 2/6 for the start of last year’s final between the same players. The end of that match moved to ESPN2 because of rain delays.
The men’s final was postponed from Sunday to Monday for the fourth straight year because of wet weather.
Ratings represent the percentage of all homes with televisions tuned into a program.
Shares represent the percentage of all homes with TVs in use at the time.
Overnight ratings measure the country’s largest markets.
The Associated Press
