Tennis: Djokovic hints at early end to ATP Tour campaign
Novak Djokovic has given an insight into the future of his tennis career, sharing with media in Bulgaria on Tuesday that he may end his season early.
“For the first time in my career, I don’t have any long-term plans,” said Djokovic, speaking at an exhibition in Sophia before playing long-time friend Grigor Dimitrov.
“I live in the moment and I’ll see what happens.
“Today I’m going to play in Sofia against Grigor, then in China, and then in an exhibition tournament in Saudi Arabia.
“After that, I don’t know. We’ll see how I feel and we’ll judge.
“Family life is very important to me. I want to be with my wife and children, to be part of their daily lives, which I haven’t been able to do for many years.”
The only ATP tournament Djokovic is registered for this year is the Masters 1000 event in Shanghai, taking place from October 2–13.
However, there are two other major competitions remaining in the tennis calendar: the Paris Masters and the ATP Finals.
If he opts to end his season after the Chinese tournament, it will be the first time since 2017 that he has not competed at the year-end finals in Turin.
The Serbian sits ninth in the Race to Turin and would need a strong performance in Shanghai to even make the top eight and qualify.
Last week, Djokovic made it clear that chasing a spot in Turin was not a priority for him this season.
“Torino is not my goal at all, to be honest,” the 37-year-old explained.
“I am not chasing ATP Finals, I am not chasing the rankings etc.
“As far as I am concerned, I am done with those tournaments for my career.
“My main priorities are playing for the national team and Slams, everything else is less important.”
Despite Djokovic’s laissez-faire approach to his future, tennis bookmakers are still confident he will begin his 2025 season strong.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion is the early favourite to win next year’s Australian Open — an event he has won 10 times.
Djokovic is paying +150 at BetOnline to win an 11th title in Melbourne next January, ahead of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner at +250 apiece.