Novak Djokovic hinted the end of his storied career could be close, based on his departure from Roland Garros earlier this month.
Following a semifinal loss to Jannik Sinner, the 24-time Grand Slam champion gave the crowd a prolonged acknowledgement then planted a kiss on the Court Philippe Chatrier clay before exiting the stadium.
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“This could have been the last match ever I played here, so I don't know,” he replied when asked if he would return to Paris in 2026. “That's why I was a bit more emotional even in the end.
“But if this was the farewell match of the Roland Garros for me in my career, it was a wonderful one in terms of the atmosphere and what I got from the crowd.”
But he added: “Obviously Wimbledon is next, which is my childhood favourite tournament. I'm going to do everything possible to get myself ready.
“I guess my best chances maybe are Wimbledon to win another Slam, or faster hard court, maybe Australia or something like that.
“I feel like I want to play Wimbledon, I want to play US Open. Those two, for sure. For the rest, I'm not so sure.”
DJOKOVIC: "This could have been the last match ever I played here"
We’re still at the speculative stage, but if we take Djokovic at his word, he only has a few Grand Slam tournaments left to play before ending a tennis career many believe is the greatest of all time.
And when Wimbledon begins next week, the 38-year-old targets a 25th major singles title, a haul unmatched in tennis history.
No man or woman aged 38 has won a Grand Slam singles title in the Open era. Ken Rosewall remains the oldest, thanks to his Australian Open 1972 triumph at 37 years and 62 days – a record that stands more than 53 years later.
The Australian Open – another six months away, when Djokovic will be closer to his 39th birthday – is staged on hard courts, a surface familiar to and comfortable for practically all players. Wimbledon comes much sooner and is contested on grass, where fewer players specialise.
“I just cannot discount Djokovic on grass,” former world No.15 Wally Masur told ausopen.com.
“I thought he played well at the French, he played well against Sinner. He kind of rolled the dice a bit on his forehand, he played a bit bigger than he might normally. He put a lot of scoreboard pressure on Jannik, who was match point away from winning the whole tournament.
“And on grass, Djokovic is a little better against the field, in my opinion, given his experience and the way that he sort of understands the nature of the surface.”
Djokovic’s last major title came almost two years ago at the 2023 US Open, but he remains a Grand Slam force.
Already in 2025 he has reached two major semifinals, upstaging Carlos Alcaraz to reach the last four at Melbourne Park. He has also appeared in the past six Wimbledon finals – the most recent just weeks after knee surgery – and won four consecutive titles at SW19 from 2018 to 2022.
Yet in the past two seasons Djokovic has been challenged by Sinner and Alcaraz, the world No.1 and No.2 who have combined to win the past six Grand Slam titles.
After Alcaraz won their thrilling 2023 Wimbledon final, Sinner snapped Djokovic’s record 33-match Australian Open winning streak in the 2024 semifinals. Alcaraz defended his Wimbledon title with another win over Djokovic in the 2024 final, and Sinner got Djokovic again in Paris.
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It’s reminiscent of the scenario Djokovic’s idol, Pete Sampras, faced at the US Open.
The legendary veteran lost the 2000 final to a young Marat Safin, and suffered an even more lopsided loss to a young Lleyton Hewitt in the 2001 final. He returned to the final in 2002, aged 31, and beat Andre Agassi.
Sampras never played again, ending his career on the ultimate high.
Could it be a similar story for Djokovic at Wimbledon after two final defeats to Alcaraz, the only active player to beat him at the All England Club?
"I don't think he's too far off [the level required to win Wimbledon]. This surface, it elevates him against the field,” Masur said.
"Not being seeded in the top four... It hurt him a little bit at the French, didn't it? So that's a little complicated. That's just a massive ask for anybody, let alone a 38-year-old, because they're just punishing matches [against highly-ranked players from the quarters onwards].
“But as I said, I was very impressed with him at the French, because at the end of the day, you can play well, but you've got to keep scoreboard pressure on your opponent.
"So if you asked me, is he there, or thereabouts? He sure is. Yeah, he sure is."