Novak Djokovic is still highly competitive on the ATP Tour, despite approaching his 39th birthday.
Djokovic reached the Australian Open final this year, which included an impressive victory against Jannik Sinner.
The Serbian is still ranked inside the top 5, despite reverting to an incredibly limited schedule over the last few years.
Djokovic has played just two tournaments so far this year and he’s now explained his current motivation in the sport.
Novak Djokovic’s motivation in tennis revealed
Djokovic has continued playing tennis in a brand-new era, while many of his contemporaries have hung up their rackets.
He outlasted his great rivals, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal and is now playing at an older age than both of them.
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This year alone, David Goffin, Gael Monfils, and Stan Wawrinka are all set to retire, but Djokovic shows no signs yet he’s ready to leave the sport.
In a new interview with Esquire, Djokovic outlined the main reasons why he continues to play on the ATP Tour.
“My motivation to keep playing comes from my love for the game, from competition, and from challenging myself,” he said.
“It’s about training smarter, listening to my body, and making sure I’m at my best physically and mentally so I can compete at the highest level.
“It’s one of the biggest challenges – finding the right balance between tennis and family life, especially as my children are growing and have school commitments, so they can’t travel with me as much as before.”
Djokovic explained that he wants to show a good example for his children, who often watch him from the star’s box at matches.
“When I’m on the court, I’m motivated not just to win, but to set an example – to show them values like dedication, resilience, and love for what you do. That motivation is very powerful and very personal.”
Djokovic has not played a tournament since Indian Wells, with his next potential event set to be the Madrid Open.
What Novak Djokovic has said about playing the Madrid Open
Djokovic has only played the Madrid Open twice in the last six years, but the tournament director is confident the Serbian will play in 2026.
Former professional Feliciano Lopez, who is now the tournament director of the Madrid Open, has discussed Djokovic’s chances of playing the event.
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“Novak is keen to come to Madrid; that’s what I have been told. Obviously, we know Novak’s schedule lately is what it is,” he said.
“He has the ability to play very little and still be fighting for the big titles at almost 40 years old. I think he is keen to come to Madrid.
“It’s one of his priorities on the clay court season, obviously after Roland Garros. We must be very respectful of this because Novak plays so infrequently and chooses his tournaments so specifically and precisely. We have to be cautious, but if all goes well, we will have Novak in Madrid too.”
Djokovic has won the Madrid Open three times in his career, but his last came all the way at the 2019 tournament.
The Serbian defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final, which helped him win the 33rd Masters title of his career.
