After the US Open, the season enters its last part. The last Grand Slam of 2024 crowned Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka, who were the best on the hard court of Flushing Meadows and achieved an amazing result. In the men’s tour, the Italian ace was the most consistent player this year, proving to deserve the first position in the ATP ranking.
Jannik Sinner, US Open 2024© Stream screenshot
The 23-year-old from San Candido has won two Majors and two Masters 1000, suffering only five defeats in the season. Carlos Alcaraz hit record highs in 2024, becoming the youngest player to win the French Open and the Wimbledon Championships in the same year. The young Spaniard also won the Indian Wells Masters 1000 and silver medal at the Paris Olympics, but he did not have the same regularity as Sinner in the rest of the season.
Alexander Zverev was also very consistent and he is the new World No.2, but he always lacks something to finally win a Grand Slam title. The next big tournament will be the Masters 1000 in Shanghai at the beginning of next month, preceded by some tournaments in China and Japan.
Shanghai loses Korda and Norrie
Shanghai will see all the top players, including 24-time Grand Slam champion and tennis legend Novak Djokovic, who will return to China after several years of absence. The former world number 1 has already said that he won’t be playing much in this latter part of the season and that the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin are not his goal.
Korda© Korda Facebook/Fair Use
A few hours ago, it was announced that Sebastian Korda and Cameron Norrie will not be competing at the Masters 1000 in Shanghai, which will take place from 2nd to 13th October. The young American has suffered an elbow injury and will not be able to defend the semi-final reached last year, while the British player is grounded since July due to an forearm injury.
The return of Djokovic
The wait in Shanghai is especially for Djokovic, who has won this tournament four times but his last appearance dates back to 2019. Speaking with China Daily, Michael Luevano – tournament director – opened up on Nole’s impact on ticket sales: “Novak sent a message to all his fans in China announcing his return, and the already overcrowded ticket office was overloaded. The response to his return was amazing.”
The Serbian legend has already missed several tournaments this year and ranking is no longer a goal at this point in his career. After playing the Davis Cup with Serbia, Nole admitted that the Shanghai Masters 1000 and the ‘Six Kings Slam’ in Saudi Arabia could be his last two events in 2024.
Novak Djokovic, Davis Cup 2023© Stream screenshot
“I thought that I would never have to seek motivation anywhere, it all used to come naturally – automatically – but that has not been the case in the last few years. In order to prolong my career, I need to enjoy, I need to choose wisely tournaments I am going to play. I am not playing, that won’t change” – Djokovic explained.
He continued: “After that, I am going to see what am I going to do. Usually in my career I used to have my schedule ready six months in advance, but nowadays that’s not the case, now it’s more spontaneous. Firstly, I need to physically, emotionally and mentally rest in order to even start thinking what I want to do next, in what way, how much and where.
Torino is not my goal at all, to be honest, I am not chasing ATP Finals, I am not chasing the rankings etc,” he explained. “As far as I am concerned, I am done with those tournaments for my career. Whether I will play other tournaments this year or in the future, I can’t say right now. My main priorities are playing for the national team and Slams, everything else is less important.”
The current world number 4 has not been brilliant for most of this season, in which he did not win a single title. Nole reached the final at the Wimbledon Championships, but was defeated by a huge Alcaraz on the Centre Court. Novak can be proud to finally win the gold medal at the Paris Olympics, becoming a living legend of the sport.
The feeling is that the 37-year-old from Belgrade wants to be 100% for the start of next season, especially for the Australian Open, where he will try to lift his 11th trophy. Djokovic will turn 38 in 2025 and it could really be the last good year to add more titles to his endless wall. The Serbian ace could lose many positions in the ATP ranking between now and the end of the season.