That retirement was the second time in barely six months that Djokovic, once a master of best-of-five tennis and seemingly bulletproof, was forced to withdraw from a major. In the French Open quarterfinals of 2024, the Serbian star suffered a torn medial meniscus (right knee) during his fourth-round win over Francisco Cerundelo. He was then forced to issue a walkover to Casper Ruud.
“The question Novak is probably asking himself, or I would be asking if I were his coach would be: ‘Okay. How do I get seven matches at a major at this level?’” Paul Annacone, the Tennis Channel analyst told me in November. “Can I still do that? Can my body handle that?”
It’s a critical question, and one Djokovic may not be able to regard with an objective eye. “Novak is in a part of his career where he’s playing for his legacy,” Boynton said “When you’re in the midst of that, you feel like you can do it. Like other great athletes, Novak has been pushing back against father time.”
The danger for Djokovic is that if he pushes back against the clock too hard, he may jeopardize his longevity and the long, graceful exit he seeks. Djokovic is, as Annacone put it, “A guy that really empties the bucket in terms of using science to figure out how to maximize his fitness and stuff.” But the toll exacted by those long Grand Slam matches is undeniable, and a challenge even to the young bucks.
