PARIS– It would be foolish to tell Novak Djokovic out of any game, no matter how dire the circumstances or how severe the deficit. He has shown this repeatedly, in the last two victories in the French Open.
Likewise, it would be a mistake to rule out Djokovic now after a torn meniscus in his body. right knee forced him to withdraw of the clay-court tournament where he was the defending champion – and where he was supposed to play in the quarter-finals on Wednesday.
And ultimately, it wouldn’t make much sense to start pondering whether this could portend the real and true end of competitive tennis for any of the so-called Big Three, after Djokovic joined contemporaries and rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal to win the title. title after title – 66 Grand Slam trophies combined – and spend week after week in first place in the ATP rankings.
Year after year, people wondered when it would happen for all of them. Because, of course, it had to happen, whether due to a decline in skills or an accumulation of injuries or, simply, age. Federer was the first to say goodbye, playing his last match at Wimbledon a month before turning 40 in 2021 – a quarter-final loss to Hubert Hurkacz – and marking his retirement 15 months later with a farewell match at the Laver Cup. Nadal, who was 38 on Monday, has battled hip and abdominal problems over the past 1 1/2 years, including surgery, and is currently on the only clay court losing streak in all of his career, with a setback at the last Italian Open. month – for Hurkacz – followed by a elimination in the first round at Roland Garros last week. His future is unclear, although he seems like someone who wants to try to continue competing.
As for Djokovic? Firstly, it is impossible to know exactly how long he will be sidelined after being injured during a fourth round victory against #23 Francisco Cerundolo on Monday, which lasted five sets spread over more than 4 and a half hours. It was his second consecutive five-set match, with his total court time in both exceeding 9 hours, and he lost 2–1 in sets on both occasions.
“I didn’t know, to be honest,” Djokovic said on Monday night, “whether I should continue or not.”
Wimbledon, which he has won seven times, starts on July 1. The Summer Olympics, where he would love to finally win the gold medal, begin their tennis matches on July 27th at Roland Garros.
Yes, he is 37 years old. No, he didn’t win any titles all season; It didn’t even make it to the final. Yes, his unbeaten run in the Australian Open semi-finals and finals ended with a quarter-final defeat to Jannik Sinner in January. No, he has not yet decided who will be the permanent coach to replace Goran Ivanisevic. Yes, Djokovic will abandon the top spot in the rankings starting next week, being supplanted by Sinner, a 22-year-old Italian who still has a chance of winning Roland Garros and getting halfway to a calendar-year Grand Slam.
“To see Novak (retire) is, for everyone, disappointing,” Sinner said, “so I wish him a speedy recovery.”
This season represents for Djokovic the worst slump he has had in some time, even if it included his 370th victory in a Grand Slam match, breaking his tie with Federer for the most ever. It may be Djokovic’s lowest period on the court since mid-2016 until mid-2018, when he went 24 months without a major championship and needed an operation on his right elbow.
It’s instructive to remember what happened after that: Djokovic won Wimbledon in 2018, beginning a period in which he took home the trophy in 12 of the 19 Grand Slam tournaments he entered. That pushed your row count up to 24the most in the sport’s professional era, which began in 1968 – two more than Nadal, four more than Federer.
Carlos Alcaraz, the 21-year-old with two majors who is prepared, along with Sinner, to take the lead in the game, highlighted Djokovic’s history of returning from injuries: “He comes back stronger and he comes back quickly. ”
This is what Djokovic said on the day he won the opening and final title of the drought at the All England Club six years ago: “There were several moments when I was frustrated and questioning whether I could get back (to) the desired level or not. But that makes this whole journey even more special for me.”
Given his often demonstrated determination, it shouldn’t shock anyone to hear him echo that sentiment in the future.
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Howard Fendrich has been an AP tennis writer since 2002. Find his stories at and write to him at hfendrich@ap.org
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