The longer Novak Djokovic plays the more the questions about his retirement will continue to loom.
He is 38 years of age and the dominance he once had in the game has now shifted to Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz.
The Serbian has reached the semifinals of each Grand Slam this year but he has been unable to break through and a record 25th major remains elusive.
Djokovic will have one more chance to claim another Grand Slam at the upcoming US Open, but once again there will be a focus on how long he will continue to play.
Photo by Visionhaus/Getty ImagesSam Querrey and John Isner think Novak Djokovic will not announce his retirement ahead of time
While Novak Djokovic has expressed he has no plans to retire as of now, he has also admitted the possibility of playing at some events for the final time, such as when he exited the Madrid Open in April.
While he is still capable of playing at a high level, it remains to be seen how much longer Djokovic will put up with not winning any Grand Slams if he is unable to end his drought.
His future was discussed by his former rivals John Isner and Sam Querrey on the Nothing Major podcast, and they both agree that Djokovic will not announce his retirement ahead of time, such as Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer did.
Querrey asked: “Do you think Djokovic is going to be a guy who announces his retirement like 2026 will be my last year?
“Or do you think he’s a guy who all of a sudden is like that was my last tournament, I am done with the game. I think that. I think whenever the moment comes, I think guys that is my last event. I don’t think he’s going to announce it.”
Isner replied: “I think you’re right. I guess when you know you know. He might just reach that point where he wakes up one morning and it’s like man, I have had enough. Hopefully that is four years from now.”
Querrey then added: “He might know and he might be keeping it that maybe just him, his family and coaches know and ‘x’ will be his last event and he won’t tell the world until after it’s over.”
Photo by MARTIN KEEP/AFP via Getty ImagesNovak Djokovic wants to win a record 25th Grand Slam before he retires
It is unknown when Djokovic will retire from tennis, but he would love to be the winner of 25 Grand Slam titles before he decides to hang up his racket.
While no male player holds more majors than Djokovic, he is tied with Margaret Court on 24, and he wants to be the outright record holder.
This was reinforced by 2013 Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli, who thinks Djokovic is pushing extremely hard to break new ground in the Grand Slam count.
“For me, that desire to win everything, you see it in the depths of his eyes. That moment when he won Olympic gold… He never gave up on that quest,” Bartoli was quoted as saying by L’Equipe.
“He wants to finish with 25 Grand Slams to be at the top of the pyramid and not have any name next to his, and I think he won’t stop until he gets that.”