Djokovic did win Olympic Gold in Paris, however, as he accomplished a lifelong dream at Roland Garros.

His ATP performances did see him slip to seventh in the world rankings, playing just a handful of tournaments in 2024.

Djokovic’s wife made reference to his schedule earlier this year, implying that the 37-year-old would continue to focus on the Major tournaments, and Masters 1000 events.

He’ll no doubt be looking to the Australian Open in January as his first target for the new year, but Djokovic may have just hinted at a big change he’ll be making in 2025.

Novak Djokovic hints at playing a much fuller ATP schedule in 2025

News recently broke that Djokovic will play in the Qatar Open in 2025, joining Jannik Sinner, Daniil Medvedev, and Andrey Rublev at the event.

The tournament will be an ATP 500 event for the first time next season, and organizers will be hoping to attract more big names.

His appearance in Doha will be his first at the ATP 500 level since he lost to Medvedev in the semi-finals of the Dubai Open in March 2023.

Djokovic has won the Qatar Open twice in his career to date, back when the event was an ATP 250 tournament, taking home the trophy in 2016, and 2017.

His win in 2017 against Djokovic’s new coach, Andy Murray, was an absolute classic, as the Brit and Serb battled it out in three sets.

The 37-year-old’s commitment to playing a tournament below the Grand Slam and Masters 1000 level so early into the 2025 season could well suggest a different approach to his tennis schedule.

Djokovic withdrew from the ATP Finals and Paris Masters at the end of 2024, and fans had expected the Serb to play an even shorter schedule next year.

The move to play in Doha could be the first of many ‘smaller’ tournaments that Djokovic will play in 2025, having enjoyed success at the Dubai Open and China Open in recent years.

It remains to be seen if his appearance in Qatar, will be a ‘one-off’ at ATP 500 level next year, or if it’s a sign of things to come, and the Serb will bless fans with a fuller schedule.

How much tennis did Novak Djokovic play in 2024?

It’s well known that Djokovic didn’t exactly play a full ATP schedule in 2024, but how much less tennis did he play than in recent years?

The 37-year-old played nine tour-level tournaments in 2024, as well as the United Cup, Olympic Games, and the Davis Cup.

Unlike some other players on the ATP Tour, Djokovic hasn’t played as many tournaments post-covid, as he continues to hover around 12, 13 tournaments every year.

A big change from what we saw earlier on in the Serb’s career when he often played over 15 tournaments per season.

The rest of the top players in men’s tennis played far more than Djokovic in 2024, perhaps a sign that the 24-time Major champion needs to stay on court for longer if he wants to achieve success in the new year.

• Jannik Sinner (World number one) – 16 tournaments played
• Alexander Zverev (World number two) – 23 tournaments played
• Carlos Alcaraz (World number three) – 18 tournaments played
• Taylor Fritz (World number four) – 25 tournaments played
• Daniil Medvedev (World number five) – 19 tournaments played

It seems unlikely that we’ll see Djokovic play as many events as his younger rivals, but if he wants to return to the top of the sport, he may need to start playing a few more ATP 500 and 250 events in 2025.

Djokovic is set to return at the Brisbane International ATP 250 event, which begins on December 30.

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