Novak Djokovic opens up about what he’s now accepted about his own tennis as he admits what has got worse

Novak Djokovic is currently in unfamiliar territory after a poor run of form leading into Roland Garros.

Djokovic is winless on clay so far this year, after suffering opening-round losses at both the Monte Carlo Masters and the Madrid Open.

Following his loss to Matteo Arnaldi in the Spanish capital, Djokovic withdrew from the Italian Open.

The Serbian has since decided to take a wildcard into the Geneva Open, but Djokovic will be without Andy Murray after announcing that he will no longer be coached by the Brit.

Novak Djokovic opens up about what he’s now accepted about his own tennis

Djokovic reached the Miami Open final in March, but has struggled for form outside of the Floridian Masters 1000 tournament.

When speaking to press ahead of his return to the matchcourt at the Geneva Open, Djokovic admitted that he has accepted that he can no longer have the same consistency at this stage of his career.

However, the 37-year-old does still believe that he can contend for Grand Slam titles going forward.

“Stress and pressure are part of what we do,” said Djokovic. “Billie Jean King said that pressure is a privilege, it really is. It means you are doing something meaningful.

“There are some far, far bigger pressures that people feel in life so I am not going to come here and complain about my pressures. Far from that.

“It still is my choice, actually it’s my choice over the last few years to continue playing tennis more than it has ever been. I still continue to have support of the closest people in my life, which is the most meaningful thing to me.

“Without that I would not be able to keep the balance between being available to my family and being involved in other things that are off the tennis court and still be pursuing the tennis career.

“I know what it takes to be a Grand Slam champion and I know what it takes to be at the top of the game. It’s a big commitment and dedication. It’s not as smooth and easy for me as it was 10 years ago.
Obviously things change and my life has changed a lot but for the better to be honest.

“I know the chapter that I am embracing and I am trying to navigate through. I am still connected to tennis and want to express myself on the court and I feel I still have the game to be one of the contenders for the top Grand Slam titles.

“For me it’s still a great motivation as long as I am able to perform at that high level. Of course, I do have more ups and downs with my results and we can see that in the last year and a half.
Obviously it’s not ideal for me to be experiencing that, but it is what it is.

“My level is maybe not as consistent as it was. Not maybe, it is not. I know that. But at the same time I know which tournaments I prioritise and where I want to come out as the best performer in terms of what I have.”

Novak Djokovic’s performances since his last Grand Slam title

Djokovic won his last Grand Slam title at the US Open in 2023, which enabled him to lift a record 24th major trophy.

While he has not been able to add to his Grand Slam trophy cabinet, Djokovic definitely appears to have raised his level for the biggest tournaments.

Only once in his five major appearances since the 2023 US Open has Djokovic not reached at least the quarter-finals.

His best performance at a Grand Slam tournament over the past 12 months came at Wimbledon, where Djokovic reached the final before losing to Carlos Alcaraz.

Djokovic will be hoping that he can source some of that previous Grand Slam inspiration at Roland Garros this year, where he will be the sixth seed.

Before then he will compete at the ATP 250 tournament in Geneva, where he will play Marton Fucsovics in his opening match.