Novak Djokovic is still well and truly alive in the race to the ATP Finals despite missing the recent Paris Masters.
It’s not known whether the world No. 5 will compete at the season-ending championships in Turin, or whether he’s already secretly ended his season.
But one former player believes Djokovic will skip the elite top-eight event after looking to Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
Djokovic has become increasingly selective with his schedule. Earlier this year, he admitted he was “done” with tournaments like the ATP Finals and would be prioritising the Grand Slams and opportunities to represent his country.
But the 24-time Grand Slam champion has yet to officially pull out of the year-end Finals even though he is currently sixth in the race, with the top eight players qualifying. With his participation up in the air, Greg Rusedski doesn’t think fans will see Djokovic in Turin.
“I will be surprised if he plays in Turin or plays any more tennis this season, but never discount him,” the former world No. 4 told Tennis Channel.
Instead, Rusedski wants to see 37-year-old Djokovic prioritise his health and fitness to have a better 2025 season.
He continued: “For me, if Novak is 100 per cent healthy and gets fit, he is in the mix to win every Major again.
“Don’t discount Novak. Health is your wealth, the older you become the smarter you have to become and he knows these things.”
Djokovic’s long-time rivals Federer and Nadal were ultimately forced to announce their respective retirements after battling injuries that they couldn’t come back from. And the retired British pro believes the current world No. 5 can learn from them.
“He has looked at Federer and Rafa, he has looked at the competition and knows he has to change a few things to beat the likes of Sinner and Alcaraz back to back,” he said.
While Djokovic has not yet announced the end of his season, he was spotted on a beach in the Maldives after skipping the Paris Masters, all but confirming that he has no more plans to compete in 2024.
The Serb is the reigning champion at the ATP Finals and will lose 1,300 ranking points if he does not go to Turin to defend his crown.
But Djokovic will be seen again before the end of the year – he’s planning to attend the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga to watch Nadal retire.
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