Novak Djokovic played little and badly this season, made exceptional for the amazing victory at the Paris Olympics. The Serbian champion has finally fulfilled his dream of winning the gold medal for his country, playing his best tennis in the final against Carlos Alcaraz on the court Philippe Chatrier in Paris.
Novak Djokovic© @DjokerNole X account
The 24-time Grand Slam champion burst into tears at the end of the match and admitted to having experienced the strongest emotions of his legendary career. For the rest, the former world number 1 was quite disappointing. For the first time since 2017 and for the second time since 2011, the 37-year-old from Belgrade has not won a single Major in an entire season.
Novak did not win an ATP title in 2024 and – at this time – would not qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin. Many fans and insiders expected Nole to add more tournaments in order to defend his title in Turin, but the recent statements by the Serbian have shocked everyone.
Nole surprised everyone
After the Davis Cup weekend with his Serbia, Djokovic has admitted that the Grand Slam tournaments and events with his national team are his only goals at this point in his career. The current number 4 world will play the Shanghai Masters 1000 – probably under pressure from sponsors – and does not know what other tournaments it will play in the last months of the season.
Novak knows that his career is very close to completion and he only wants to play those events in which he is 100% motivated. In an interview with the Serbian media Blic during the Davis Cup match between Serbia and Greece, Djokovic also talked about aspects not related to tournaments, matches or battles won and lost on a tennis court. The current number 4 in the world has been asked about a topic that affects many families around the world such as the education of children. Djokovic and his wife Jelena have two children: 10-year-old Stefan and 7-year-old Tara.
Novak Djokovic, 2024 Paris Olympics© Stream screenshot
Djokovic revealed during this interview that “his two children do not have a mobile phone yet and they complain about this situation because, it is the motivation given by the children, “at school everyone but us has it””. The 24-time Slam champion also stated that this situation often involves considerable discussions in the family.
Speaking during this interview, Djokovic said that “because our two children do not yet have a cell phone, my wife and I often discuss this situation because they complain about being almost the only ones at school who do not have one”. Djokovic gave a reason for this decision. And this is “a not easy situation that has repercussions on other levels as well”, he said. But, it’s the thought of the Paris 2024 Olympic champion, “if everyone does something, the flock behaves that way, you have to follow it. But for me it is not necessarily so. This is where I think we stand out from the rest, because we are stubborn and active. And we are rebellious”.
Djokovic wants to be motivated
The 24-time Grand Slam champion has missed four of the seven Masters 1000 played up to this point of the season, suffering shocking defeats especially at Indian Wells (against Luca Nardi) and in Rome (against Alejandro Tabilo). In a long interview with RTS, the former World No.1 discussed the importance of winning the gold medal: “There are several reasons why Olympic gold is the greatest success. The biggest one is that I represented Serbia at the first major global world event. It’s a rare opportunity to win a medal for your country.
I won bronze at the first Olympics. Against Nadal, I was close to reaching the final. After that I lost two semi-finals and two bronze medals. Those are the heaviest defeats in my career. In tennis, we are really lucky to be able to participate in the four biggest tournaments, the Grand Slams. We can prove ourselves every year. The Olympics are precious.
Novak Djokovic© YouTube screenshot
Just because I managed not to reach the finals in the first four Olympics. I had knee surgery, I managed to rise and reach the finals of Wimbledon, where I was defeated by the opponent I defeated in the finals of the Olympic Games, and that on the court that is very famous. I can’t experience that in any other tournament. Having colleagues from other sports coming to support me gave me an extra boost. The most beautiful set of emotions was that, the day I beat Carlos Alcaraz in the final, when I fell to my knees. I’ve been blessed, I’ve experienced a lot of success, and this is the biggest.”