Novak Djokovic’s big decision is ‘imminent’ as race to qualify for ATP Finals heats up
Novak Djokovic is set to make his decision ‘imminently’ on whether he will play at the ATP Finals in Turin, but the call could still be taken out of his hands.
Djokovic has made it clear that his focus is not on qualifying for the end-of-season finals in Turin later this month, as he is prioritising spending time with his young family at this late stage of his tennis career.
The Serbian has insisted he is still committed to playing Grand Slam tournaments and trying to win a second Davis Cup title with Serbia in 2025, but he admits regular ATP Tour events are no longer motivating him.
That has inspired former British No 1 Greg Rusedski to predict he won’t play at the ATP Finals, even if he makes the top eight in the final analysis.
“I think he needs to get healthy,” Rusedski told The Tennis Channel as he spoke about Djokovic. “We still see that knee brace there and once we don’t see that any more, he’s back.
“Last season he won the ATP Finals and played in Davis Cup, so he couldn’t get the prep he needed in for this season. Then he picked up that injury at the French Open.
“For me, if Novak is 100 per-cent healthy, he is in the mix to win every major again next year. Health is your wealth and the older you get, the smarter you need to get.
“Off season to me is huge and the longer he can make his off season the better off he will be for 2025,
“I will be surprised if he plays in Turin or plays any more tennis this season, but never discount him.
“For me, if Novak is 100% healthy and gets fit, he is in the mix to win every major again
“Don’t discount Novak. Health is your wealth, the older you become the smarter you have to become and he knows these things.
“He has looked at Federer and Rafa, he has looked at the competition and knows he has to change a few things to beat the likes of Sinner and Alcaraz back to back.”
Djokovic could have enough ranking points from 2024 to qualify for the ATP Finals despite only playing a limited tournament schedule this year.
Even though Djokovic has had the worst year of results since his formative days on the tour, his run to the Wimbledon final and Australian Open semi-finals has bolstered a yearly ranking points total to ensure he is currently in sixth place in the ATP Race list.
The top eight players qualify for Turin, but with Djokovic spending his last few days on a beach in the Maldives, there is an expectation that he will not play again in 2024.
If he does withdraw, ninth place on the ATP Race list would ensure qualification for Turin and there could be some twists and turns in this story before it concludes.
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The three big contenders striving to seal a place in the ATP Finals have all opted to play in one of the last ATP Tour events of the season in Metz next week.
Andrey Rublev is top seed in the draw and will be eager to find some form after a horrible run of results saw him lose what was a secure top eight place in the ATP Race list a few weeks ago.
Casper Ruud is second seed in Metz and he may only need to win a couple of matches in the ATP 250 tournament to qualify for Turin, especially if Djokovic pulls out.
Grigor Dimitrov is also in a high quality draw in Metz, but his participation must be in doubt as he looked drained and physically spent in his defeat against Karen Khachanov in the Paris Masters on Friday.
Alex de Minaur is also a big contender to qualify for the ATP Finals after he picked up some important ranking points in Paris.
Now the Aussie has entered the ATP 250 tournament in Belgrade next week, as he looks to push over the finishing like in the battle to play in Turin.
De Minaur could play Switzerland’s Stan Wawrinka in his opening match in Serbia, but he will fancy his chances of picking up the ranking points he needs in an event featuring lower ranked players than those competing in Metz.
The race to the ATP Finals will become clearer when Djokovic confirms his intentions, with the final tournaments of the regular season boosted by a thrilling race to qualify for Turin.
