WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — When Novak Djokovic realized he was the Wimbledon champion, he fell to the ground and covered the grass like a blanket.

It was a fitting celebration for a man whose court coverage was the biggest reason he was able to defeat defending champion Rafael Nadal 6-4, 6-1, 1-6, 6-3 in Sunday’s final.

Djokovic, who was already guaranteed to take over the No. 1 ranking from the Spaniard on Monday, won his first Wimbledon title and extended his mastery over Nadal this season with a fifth straight head-to-head victory.

After shaking hands with Nadal at the net, Djokovic walked back out on court and crouched down. He pulled a blade or two of grass out of the manicured lawn and put it in his mouth.

“I felt like an animal,” said Djokovic, who won his first grass-court title. “I wanted to see how it tastes. It tastes good.”

Djokovic assured himself of the top ranking just by reaching the final. He opened the season with 41 straight wins, including the Australian Open title, but his 43-match winning streak ended against Roger Federer in the French Open semifinals.

“I managed to achieve a lifetime goal and I managed to make my dream come true, all in three days’ time,” said Djokovic, who tossed three of his rackets into the crowd before accepting the championship trophy. “It’s just an incredible feeling that I’m never going to forget. This is the best day of my tennis career.”

The victory over Nadal improved Djokovic’s record in 2011 to 48-1, with five of the wins coming against the Spaniard in finals — two on hard courts, two on clay and now one on grass.

“He played better than me,” said Nadal, the 2008 and ’10 Wimbledon champion.