After winning the Paris Olympics, Novak Djokovic has little left to do in tennis, yet his motivation appears to be as strong as ever.
Novak Djokovic appears to have no plans to retire anytime soon. The recently crowned Olympic champion has announced his intention to defend his title at the Los Angeles Games.
Djokovic ultimately won gold after five attempts, completing his final tennis objective. He is only the fifth player in the sport’s history to complete the so-called Golden Slam in singles, winning all four majors and the Olympics, behind Rafael Nadal, Serena Williams, Andre Agassi, and Steffi Graf.
While there is nothing noteworthy for the 37-year-old to win, he is hungry for greater achievement. That includes becoming the first player to compete in six singles Olympic contests in four years, in Los Angeles.
“I’ll try to make it to Los Angeles,” he stated during Serbia’s medal ceremony in Belgrade on Monday. “I would like to. The greatest pleasure is representing Serbia in the Olympic Games.
“For me, this is the realization of a childhood goal; the pressure to win gold was enormous because I had already won almost everything. “I feel fulfilled and complete; let us celebrate.”
Unlike his opponents Nadal, Federer, and Murray, Djokovic has been relatively injury-free throughout his storied career. However, his meniscus tear at the French Open may serve as a caution for the future.
It is certainly possible that he will be able to play until he is 41. It would almost definitely propel him to the top of the list of all-time Grand Slam wins, which he now shares with Margaret Court (24).
He can achieve this at the US Open, which begins later this month. However, he will enter the year’s last major without any competitive hard-court preparation.
Djokovic withdrew from both last week’s Canadian Open and this week’s Cincinnati Open, most likely due to the Games’ rapid turnaround. Carlos Alcaraz, who he defeated for gold in Paris, will compete in Cincinnati, hoping to revenge his loss in last year’s final.