 "Novak Djokovic picked only major tournaments to play in 2025. Image: Reuters")
Tennis legend Novak Djokovic endured a tough season, reaching the semifinals of all four majors but still failing to win his elusive 25th Grand Slam title. He has turned 38, and speculation about his retirement has been doing the rounds for quite some time. It has now emerged that Djokovic has no plans to retire yet and is looking to play at least until 2027.
Djokovic’s retirement plans revealed
According to former doubles World No. 1 and coach Mark Knowles, Djokovic will continue to play in 2026 and 2027 and has no plans to retire anytime soon. Knowles also said Djokovic will mainly focus on the Grand Slam tournaments and will try to get to his record 25th title. Knowles further added that he would like to see Djokovic beat ‘Father Time’ because no other player has ever done it.
In tennis, Father Time refers to the natural decline of a player due to age-related issues. “You know what, Novak [Djokovic] is hard to speculate on. I don’t think any mere mortal could find motivation to still play, but he does. Thankfully for us, we get to see him play. We want to see the all-time greats play forever. He is testing Father Time, which we all love. Nobody has defeated it ever. He is coming close. He is in a battle with it,” Knowles said.
“From what I have heard, Novak is going to play in 2026 and 2027. From what I’m hearing, there are no thoughts of him shutting things down. So he obviously loves the challenge and still believes in himself. I think Novak has been pretty transparent with his schedule. He is severely focused on the majors and trying to get number 25,” he added.
Knowles said that Djokovic’s insistence on continuing to play tennis may also be linked to sponsorships. The Bahamian further added that he does not expect Djokovic to play too much outside of Grand Slams.
“Obviously, I think it’s a sponsorship element which I think is great. Novak is fortunate, and we’re fortunate. Any time we watch Novak play, we want to watch him play. I would not expect too much [outside the majors]. His third gear is still better than most. But I don’t think we are going to see him shift into fifth or sixth gear,” Knowles said.
After the 2025 US Open, Djokovic admitted that it is getting harder to beat younger players like Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner in five-set matches. He said he has a better chance in shorter matches against the current World No. 1 and World No. 2, but the big Grand Slams are tougher now. Alcaraz and Sinner have shared all four majors between them this year.