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Journalism of Courage
At the stage of his career Novak Djokovic is in, any unexplained withdrawal from a tournament will be seen as part of a bigger picture about his longevity in the game.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion has had an underwhelming 2025 season by his lofty standards with Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner dividing the four major titles between themselves, even though the Serb made the semifinals at each one of them, a remarkable achievement at 38 years of age.
But with the former World No.1 withdrawing from the upcoming Paris Masters without providing any explicit reason has shrouded his plans for the rest of the season in uncertainty.
The pullout comes close on the heels of Djokovic retiring midway through his match against American Taylor Fritz at the Six Kings Slam in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, for which the top players received hefty sums as appearance fees. He had been beaten convincingly by Sinner in his previous match in the exhibition event and had hinted that he may have to pick and choose events to prolong his season. He had also been hampered physically when he lost to journeyman Valentin Vacherot in the semifinals of the Shanghai Masters.
“Dear Paris, unfortunately I’ll not compete at this year’s Paris Masters,” Djokovic wrote on social media. “I have amazing memories and great success over the years, especially being able to conquer the title seven times.”
The event in the French capital is the final Masters 1000 event of the season, and plays a big role in finalizing the eight qualifiers for the ATP World Tour Finals in Turin. Djokovic has already made it to the season finale in third place despite only playing 12 tournaments this year.
The Serbian legend is a seven-time champion at the year-ender and would be keen to have another crack at the title. Also, the upcoming ATP 250 event in Athens, owned by Djokovic’s family and relocated from Belgrade, should be a main target for him. It is followed by the Tour finale in Italy.
“Now it’s rest and really addressing some of the issues I have with my body,” he had said while withdrawing from the Saudi event.
“Then hopefully, playing the last couple of tournaments of the season, let’s see.”
Though Djokovic has not lost his shot-making ability, he has often admitted to “running out of gas” in the latter stages of big tournaments. But he still harbours hopes of landing a 25th Grand Slam title, which will put him ahead of everyone – male or female – in the sport.
January’s Australian Open, a stage where he has triumphed 10 times, could be his best chance and he would like to be at his best going into Melbourne.
