Surprising new statistics highlight how long Novak Djokovic is spending on court

Novak Djokovic’s dominion over his rivals appears to have gone to a new level, yet he does appear to be spending a little longer than normal to see off his opponents.

Djokovic secured the year-end world No 1 ranking with a win against Holger Rune at the ATP Finals on Monday night, confirming he is not ready to stop winning any time soon.

It would be natural for a champion player to spend more time on court at the back end of his career, as his dominant days fade and he needs to fight harder to fend off younger rivals.

And that appears to be the case, with Djokovic winning just nine of his matches in under 90 minutes this season.

That is considerably less than the number of quick match wins he has produced over the course of his career.

The shot clock was introduced to encourage players to serve a little more quickly in 2020, yet Djokovic matches seem to be taking longer now, suggesting he is not blowing opponents away as quickly as he did during his prime years at the start of the 2010s.

Respected commentator and coach Mark Petchey has highlighted how Djokovic has trimmed down his match time in recent years, with these numbers highlighting how many matches the Serbian played that were concluded in less than 90 minutes.

2010: 23

2011: 28

2012: 31

2013: 29

2014: 28

2015: 25

2016: 25

2017: 9

2018: 19

2019: 27

2020: 14

2021: 12

2022: 13

2023: 9

I had some time on my hands yesterday and as far as I can tell (this is not 100% accurate but relatively close) according to @tennisabstract these are the number of matches that @DjokerNole has played that have been under or on 90 mins each year.

The shot clock came in fully in…

— Mark Petchey (@_markpetchey) November 12, 2023

The number for 2023 is especially surprising, as Djokovic not managed to get his matches done quickly, which suggests he is finding it harder to see off his young rivals.

“Of course, the journey is still not over,” said Djokovic. “I feel if I’m winning Grand Slams why even think about ending the career that already has been going on for 20 years.

“So I still feel motivated, still feel inspired to play the best tennis in these tournaments the most – Grand Slams. Those are the ones that count I guess the most in the history of our sport.

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“I’m very of course proud of my achievements but I’m already turning the next page. This is, fortunately or unfortunately, the way it works for me, and the way I think is the correct, so to say, mentality moving forward.

“While I’m still active, I still want to win more and I still want to play at the highest level. Obviously Grand Slams and Masters events are the most valuable tournaments in our sport.

“I don’t even know in which stage of my career I am anymore, but I think that every win in a big tournament, maybe the value is double nowadays.”

If Djokovic can continue to keep his matches short, it will give him the best chance of extending his career and protecting his body for the bigger challenges at the back end of tournaments.

“The desire is still there, but things can change quickly,” he added. 

“I am 36, I’ve been a pro for 20 years. I don’t like to look at age as a decisive factor, I pay attention to what my general state is like and whether I enjoy it.

“History is on the line, and it’s been like that for more than five years now. Almost any tournament there is something like ’oh, now you can achieve this or break this record’. I think I’ve broken a lot of records, but that still pushes me to keep going.

“My body reacts differently during and after matches now than it used to. I accept that, but I also have to adapt to that.”

Winning matches in the most efficient manner possible will give Djokovic the best chance to extend his career, with the world No 1 suggesting he is keen to play for another ‘three or four years’ if he is still winning the sport’s biggest tournaments.