Novak Djokovic makes his position clear on the last big prize of the tennis year
Will Novak Djokovic make a push to defend his ATP Finals title in Turin?
He gave his answer in emphatic terms after securing a victory for Serbia on Saturday and it is clear that his targets are now very defined.
“ATP Finals are not my goal this year,” he declared.”That and rankings are not my main interest.
“I won everything I possibly could and main priorities are Grand Slams and playing for Serbia. I need some rest to figure out what I want and how much.”
Djokovic’s comments may have answered the question of where and when he will play for the rest of this year, as he would need to play a hectic schedule to qualify for the ATP Finals in Turin in November.
After playing a limited schedule and suffering some surprise early losses in tournaments in the first half of 2024, Djokovic admitted he was struggling to find motivation for events outside of Grand Slams and his pursuit of Olympic gold.
His reduced tournament entries this year and failure to win a major title has contributed to his current position of No 9 in the ATP Race, meaning he has ground to make up in the battle to qualify for the end-of-year finals in Turin.
Djokovic has been reluctant to play in the Asian swing of the ATP Tour in recent years, but he may need to play in the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Shanghai if he wants to collect points to qualify for Turin.
As he reflects on his year so far, Djokovic seems content that he finally got the Olympic gold medal that was his priority.
“I had the feeling that I could go all the way at Roland Garros, but then the injury occurred. I played finals at Wimbledon…The Olympics were my biggest goal, and I played my best tennis in Paris,” said the 24-time Grand Slam champion.
“If it’s that kind of year – me winning a golden Olympic medal without a Slam, I accept it because I’ve been waiting for that gold my whole life.
“It’s a fact that this is my worst season in terms of results in the last 15 years, I feel that way too, but it is what it is.”
