Novak Djokovic takes a big risk at the 2025 Australian Open

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Novak Djokovic’s decision to skip the 2024 Paris-Bercy Masters 1000 next week was quite surprising. After reaching the final in Shanghai and losing to Jannik Sinner, the Serbian legend seemed motivated for the season finale and was well positioned to enter the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin.

After the final in the penultimate Masters 1000 of the season, Nole played the 'Six Kings Slam' in Saudi Arabia (where he lost again to Sinner, before beating his eternal rival Rafael Nadal in the final for third and fourth place). A few days later, the news was made public that the 37-year-old from Belgrade will not defend his title won last year in Bercy. At this point, it is safe to assume that the 24-time Grand Slam champion may decide to skip the ATP Finals (in which he is the defending champion) and focus directly on 2025.

At this time, the former world number 1 would qualify for the Finals waiting to hear the results of his opponents in the upcoming tournaments. To be honest, Djokovic had admitted very candidly that the ATP Finals were no longer a goal at this point of his career and that he would bet everything on the Grand Slam tournaments.

In 2024, the Serbian champion won the gold medal at the Olympics, a goal he pursued throughout his career, but failed to take the 25th Major title. The former world number 1 will try to achieve this feat in 2025, perhaps already at the Australian Open, but it is worth clarifying one aspect.

If he skips the Nitto ATP Finals, where he lifted the trophy last year, Nole’s ranking could fall further. There is a serious risk that Novak could be out of the top eight in the ATP ranking and - if he does - he could face players like Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz already in the fourth round of the 2025 AO.

"Unfortunately, I will not be playing in Paris this year. I apologize to all who were looking forward to watching me play there. I wish all the players, sponsors, organizers, and fans a great tournament. I have plenty of fond memories winning several titles and look forward to being back with you next year" – Nole wrote on his social media.

At almost 38, it could be a problem to have a very tough draw from the first rounds in the Grand Slam tournaments. Unlike the past years, Novak struggled a lot in the Majors in 2024. With the exception of the final reached at the Wimbledon Championships, the Serbian legend did not achieve much in the Slams this year. In Australia he was stopped in the semifinals against Sinner, while at the French Open he had to withdraw due to a knee injury. He did not do better in New York, where he was eliminated already in the first week by Alexei Popyrin.

In the latest edition of hid podcast, former ATP ace Andy Roddick explained Djokovic’s new approach: “Talking about being 10th in the Race to Turin, Novak has said that he’s not playing Turin. He said he has no interest in playing Turin. Now, he can always change his mind, but simply, I’m not great at math but if someone ahead of you is not playing, then that means you’re in ninth.”

Roddick also commented on his decision to skip Paris-Bercy: ”That makes sense. I mean Novak has said that in so many words, and we don’t want this to take the focus away from Tommy Paul, but Novak is going to pick and choose his spots now. He’s going to try to juggle the schedule, where he gets enough matches before majors, but really, my interpretation of how Novak is talking is that he doesn’t care about rankings anymore. He knows what he’s been, can’t take away the No 1 ranking forever. He’s had it more weeks than anyone. This is how the next phase of his career is going to go, where he picks and chooses his spots, doesn’t care about Paris, isn’t going to play Turin.”

The 24-time Grand Slam champion has announced that he will be in Malaga next month to pay his respects to Nadal, who will play the last event of his legendary career. Nole and Rafa have created one of the most iconic rivalries in modern sport, playing 60 times with a 31-29 record in favor of the Serbian ace. Their last official match was in the second round of the Olympic tournament in Paris, but they actually met in the exhibition in Saudi Arabia.