Novak Djokovic has backed Jannik Sinner's decision to bring his 2026 season to an early end due to a knee injury, saying the world No. 1 has been "smart" to think about the rest of his career.
Sinner has not played a match since successfully defending his Wimbledon title in July. The knee injury ruled him out of the US Open and other major tournaments, and he recently pulled out of the Shanghai Masters before announcing he was shutting down his season altogether. He will not return to a match court until January at the earliest, when he is due to play the 1 Point Slam at the Australian Open before the main draw in Melbourne.
Djokovic praises long-term mindset
In a video announcement earlier this week, the five-time Grand Slam champion explained that he needed a "course of treatment for his knee", a decision he made with his doctors. Djokovic, who has not yet reached out to Sinner, plans to send him a message following the announcement.
"I haven't been in touch with Jannik since he got injured. I saw the news, well, two days ago. I'll reach out to him to see, you know, how he's doing," the recent China Open champion said. "I don't know what it is, really. If somebody says it's a knee, someone, you know, I'm not sure exactly."
Drawing on his own injury experience
Djokovic, a 24-time Major winner, compared Sinner's situation to his own elbow injury in 2017, which kept him out for six or seven months and required surgery. He acknowledged the difficulty of making a comeback after a long absence.
"If you're away from the tour for so long, to make a comeback, you know, you have to deal with more things than you normally have to deal with. Particularly mentally, on the mental side," he said. "Of course, physically, if you're ready, you're ready. You're evaluating that with your team constantly, and you then come back to play at the highest level when you get the green light to be able to compete. But then it's mental. You know, you're on the court and you're thinking, you know, am I really completely healed and free to make this run. I mean, for him, if it's a knee, obviously it's affecting everything. It's affecting every single movement."
Djokovic said he is sure Sinner is making wise choices with his team, adding that the tennis world misses him. "He's been the best player in the world, and he's been a dominant force for the last couple of years, along with Carlos [Alcaraz], for sure, the tennis misses him," he said.
Support for Sinner's approach
Djokovic endorsed Sinner's long-term thinking, saying it is important to give yourself more years to your career. "This is what I think I saw that he said, that he's thinking long-term. That's smart because, you know, as someone that is, that was always advised and always tried to have the big picture in my mind, I really support that kind of thinking and mindset. It's important that you give yourself more years to your career, so you have more chances to accomplish all of your objectives," he added.
Sinner is not the only player whose season was cut short by injury. Carlos Alcaraz was sidelined from April to late August with a wrist injury, missing the French Open and Wimbledon among other events. The Spaniard also decided to end his season early to prevent future complications, and he has already won a title in Tokyo since returning a few weeks ago.
