Novak Djokovic walked from the stadium court in Cincinnati to the corridor reserved for post-match press interviews practically without breaking stride. The 39-year-old had been cruising up a set and well on his way to a seemingly comfortable victory when he began to feel the full force of the elements. Djokovic would devote much of his time during the final two sets to crouching on all fours between points, vomiting into towels and desperately struggling to perform.
Such was his disappointment with his ageing body failing him once again that Djokovic, who is usually one of the most loquacious on the tour, briskly answered four questions in about a minute before offering his thanks and striding to the locker room. He wanted nothing more than to get out of there.
There was once a time when an opening-round loss for Djokovic at the final Masters 1000 event would send alarm bells ringing, but perhaps the most interesting part of this defeat is how familiar such results have become. This year, his results in the paltry three non-slam events he has played were losses in his opening match at the Cincinnati and Italian Opens and a fourth-round defeat at Indian Wells. His last quarter-final at a Masters 1000 tournament came in October at the Shanghai Masters.
There have been numerous issues during those reverses, from injuries to other physical ailments or difficult preparation, but Djokovic’s motivation in these tournaments has clearly been a factor. He has spent his entire career finding a way to drag himself through impossible situations, even when things have been physically or mentally awry. Such recoveries require an immense amount of commitment, something he clearly does not have in these tournaments of less importance. Djokovic has long identified the grand slam tournaments and Olympics as his priorities at this point in his career, and his results have reflected those convictions. For the past year and a half, Djokovic has been the most consistent player at the grand slams beyond Carlos Alcaraz or Jannik Sinner. He has reliably found his way through nearly every other obstacle.
Perhaps the most striking part of Djokovic’s fleeting one-minute press conference came when he was asked whether he envisioned himself being back at Cincinnati. He issued a sober response: “I certainly hope so, but it looks more likely not, unfortunately. But let’s see what the future brings.”
The tennis world has spent the past few years trying to anticipate when Djokovic might retire, and his tendency to cast doubt on his future after tough defeats has often looked an indicator. In this case, it is totally reasonable that he never wishes to compete in the Ohio humidity again. Otherwise, as long as he remains competitive at the grand slams, it does seem like he is content with his current life. While he stresses the importance of not looking too far forward at his age, when everything can change quickly, he has also been clear about wanting to compete in one final Olympics in Los Angeles, where he will be the defending champion.
For those reasons, it does not feel that much has changed for him ahead of the US Open, the final grand slam tournament of the year. Time and again, he has shown that he will raise his game and find a way through to the latter rounds at the majors, even when he is barely competitive elsewhere. At his age, it is only a matter of time before he also loses his edge in the biggest events, but it remains to be seen when that shift will occur.
In some ways, the final stretch of Djokovic’s career has been quite a confusing time. He has never hesitated to recognise the superiority of Sinner and Alcaraz at this stage in their careers, but he also remains one of the top four players in the world in both his own mind and according to the rest of the field.
He has repeatedly stressed that he is not fixated by the prospect of winning a 25th grand slam title and that pursuit is not the primary motivation for his longevity, but his standards have been high for so long that he still cannot help but feel the same amount of immense disappointment when he fails to live up to them as if he was still No 1. He knows that his performances and level are rare for a player of his age, that he should be proud of what he is achieving in the latter stages of his career, but he still wants more.
The one certainty, though, is his enduring love for this sport. Despite how much his reality has changed compared with the years when he was the best player in the world and racking up titles from grand slams to 250s, he continues to show up, compete and find meaning and enjoyment in the success. Long may it continue.
