Novak Djokovic has produced quite possibly the greatest season by a 38-year-old player in the history of men’s tennis.
The 24-time major winner, who turned 38 in May, remarkably reached the semi-final stage at all four Grand Slams this year – a feat only Jannik Sinner matched.
He has also become the oldest winner of an ATP Tour title: in May, he won his 100th title at the Geneva Open, and in November, Djokovic clinched the Athens Open title.
Djokovic’s success on the ATP Tour this year has put another player’s campaign into perspective.
And, unfortunately for Alexander Zverev, this new perspective does not paint his season in a positive light.
Alexander Zverev’s underwhelming season
Alexander Zverev has played 23 tournaments on the ATP Tour this season, while Novak Djokovic has competed in only 13.
Consequently, Zverev had many more opportunities than Djokovic to garner ATP ranking points this year.
However, despite having far fewer opportunities, Novak Djokovic has found himself on the shoulder of Alexander Zverev at the end of 2025.
Remarkably, following Zverev’s ATP Finals exit, Djokovic sits only 330 points behind the German on the ATP Live Rankings.
These totals highlight how impressive Djokovic has been, while also emphasising the underwhelming nature of Alexander Zverev’s season.
This season, the world number three reached the Australian Open final in January and has won one title – in Munich. Since then, he has failed to wholly impress, exiting Wimbledon and the US Open in the early stages and reaching only two ATP finals.
| Player | Ranking | ATP Live Points |
| Carlos Alcaraz | 1 | 12,050 |
| Jannik Sinner | 2 | 11,000 |
| Alexander Zverev | 3 | 5,160 |
| Novak Djokovic | 4 | 4,830 |
| Felix Auger-Aliassime | 5 | 4,245 |
What did Alexander Zverev say about his 2025 season?
After losing to Felix Auger-Aliassime in a crucial ATP Finals contest, Zverev reflected on his ‘incredibly unsatisfactory season.’
Auger-Aliassime ended Zverev’s season on November 14, beating the German 6-4, 7-6 in Turin.
“It has been an incredibly unsatisfactory season, it has been too long, with too many ups and downs, too many,” Zverev said.
“For me, there were not many high points – at most the Australian Open final, besides the title in Munich.
“Regarding everything else, it left me very unsatisfied, that’s it.”
