Novak Djokovic's 2026 season ended last week with a second-round defeat to qualifier Rinky Hijikata at the Paris Masters, despite leading by a set. The 24-time Major winner lost 2-6 6-3 6-3 and admitted he "lost complete control" of the match. The defeat meant Djokovic could not qualify for the ATP Finals, bringing his competitive year to a close.
The Serbian superstar has already committed to next year's Australian Open and will also compete in the Six Kings Slam exhibition in late December. He has long stated his wish to compete until at least the 2028 Olympic Games, and in his new Prime Video documentary, Novak Djokovic: The Wolf in Winter, he addressed questions about his retirement timeline.
Djokovic's determination and Courier's reaction
"As long as I feel like I can win tournaments and I can be one of the best players in the world, I want to keep going," the 39-year-old said. However, retired tennis icon Jim Courier has been left "astonished" by Djokovic's desire to continue, especially as it becomes more "painful" to leave his family behind while competing on the tour.
"I don't know what to believe with Novak anymore, honestly. He's he's such a boundary pusher. It's amazing," Courier told the Off Court with Greg Rusedski podcast. The former world No. 1 questioned where Djokovic wants to end his career, noting the Serb has publicly mentioned the Olympics as a potential finish.
Concerns over health and family
Courier expressed doubts about Djokovic's hopes of playing until at least mid-2028, saying: "He'll need luck to stay healthy to get there, cause that's not next year. So he's got a little bit of time to get to it." He praised Djokovic's flexibility work as essential to maintaining his body.
The four-time Major champion also highlighted the difficulty for the current world No. 12 of leaving his family at home while travelling. Djokovic and his wife, Jelena, have two children, Stefan, 12, and Tara, nine. "But I'm just astonished that he still wants to keep pushing himself after all this time, and especially because of where his kids are in their lives," Courier added.
"I have kids that are of a very similar age to his and it's painful to be away from them, because we're running out of that window before they kind of don't want to spend time with you. It's hard to really put yourself into Novak's brain, and understand what drives him, right? He's just a different kind of cat."
Djokovic himself has admitted to struggling with leaving his family behind. In his documentary, the Olympic champion explained: "I cannot be 100 per cent dedicated to tennis. It's not my life anymore. I need to be, you know, the husband, the father, I need to be all of the other things. This is the battle. How long should I do this? Why am I putting myself and my family through this over and over again?"
