Novak Djokovic’s day of leaving the tennis world may be very near as recently, the Serbian tennis player spoke out about his plans to retire from his career.
Novak Djokovic has revealed his retirement plans after admitting he is “done” with some high-profile tournaments. The world number four has had an unusual season, with his only trophy so far being the Olympic gold medal he has always wanted. However, he has also suffered some humiliating defeats in the early rounds.
Djokovic is now back competing at the Shanghai Masters after 5 years. In a press conference ahead of the tournament, Nole talked about what he will do after hanging up his racket.
Djokovic returns to action for the first time since representing Serbia at the Davis Cup last month, having suffered his worst Grand Slam result in seven years, going out in the third round of the US Open.
The 37-year-old has a limited schedule in 2024. When asked about his love of tennis at the moment, Djokovic turned his attention to his post-playing career.
“My love for tennis will never fade. I have a lot of emotions when I play, not only in tournaments but also in training sessions,” he replied. “Even when I retire from professional tennis, I feel like I will still be involved in tennis, participating in different roles, because I feel like I owe this sport a lot for what it has given me.”
The Serbian is still uncertain about his participation in the final Masters 1000 tournament of the season in Paris. At the same time, he is also outside the qualifying group for the ATP Finals.
The Olympic champion admitted that these tournaments are no longer a priority: “Usually in my career I have my schedule ready six months in advance, but that’s not the case anymore,” he explained. “Now everything is more spontaneous. First, I need to rest physically, emotionally and mentally so that I can start thinking about what I want to do next, in what way, how much and where.”
“My main priority is playing for the national team and the Grand Slams. Everything else is less important. I’ve said a million times how much playing for the national team means to me,” Djokovic added.
If the Shanghai Masters is Djokovic’s last appearance in 2024, he will be taking the tournament seriously. The world No. 4 is hoping to win his 100th career title. He will begin his campaign against either Alex Michelson or Bu Yunchaokete.