Boris Becker predicts whether Novak Djokovic will ever get his hands on a 25th Grand Slam
Boris Becker believes Novak Djokovic is still playing tennis because the Serb still believes that he win a 25th Grand Slam, but warned that ‘time is running out’ for the tennis legend.
The German, who coached the 24-time Grand Slam champion from 2013 until 2016, has been a strong voice in support of Djokovic’s chances to win the biggest titles in tennis, but admits that the belief is now waning.
Djokovic won a 24th Grand Slam at the US Open in 2023, but has lost both Grand Slam finals that he has appeared in since then (to Carlos Alcaraz at Wimbledon).
“That’s the big question now, because to win a Grand Slam, he probably has to beat both [Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner],” Becker stated, whilst speaking on the Becker Petkovic podcast.
“That’s how it was with Wimbledon, and he said Wimbledon was the tournament where he had his best chance of winning a Grand Slam.
“As a reminder, he has already won the tournament seven times. He’s now reached the semifinals of Wimbledon 14 times, just imagine. That’s so absurd, it’s an insane number.”
Most recently, Djokovic reached the last four at Wimbledon, where he fell to Jannik Sinner 6-3, 6-3, 6-4. Just a few weeks prior, he had suffered another straight-set loss to the Italian at the same stage of the French Open.
Sinner has now beaten the Serb in all of their five most recent meetings, becoming the second player to have done so – after Rafael Nadal.
In the quarter-finals, Djokovic endured a nasty slip on match point in which his hip appeared to lock up. Unfortunately for the sporting legend, this freak incident further hindered his chances against the world No 1, being unable to execute his signature grass-court sliding.
“He also has to realise, yes, he did injure himself a bit on match point against [Flavio] Cobolli, but at 38, you get injured more easily,” Becker commented.
“Against [Jannik] Sinner, in the first two sets, I think he was relatively fit. Sinner, of course, was the better player, because for me, Sinner is Djokovic 2.0; he’s another version of Djokovic, 15 years younger. Novak knows that, too.
“I’m glad he reached the semifinals; he played a great tournament, but is that enough for him?
“He’s still playing tennis because he wants to win 25 Grand Slams, to become the sole record holder.
“But it must be said that on their good days, Sinner and Alcaraz are better than Djokovic is on his good days. That frustrates him, but he’s a realist.
“The question is, how realistic are the chances he’ll win another Grand Slam now, because time is running out for him.”
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In the last 18 months, the Serb has struggled to collect trophies at the major tournaments, despite winning the gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics [against Alcaraz] and, most recently, the title at the ATP 250 in Geneva [against Hubert Hurkacz].
With Jimmy Connor’s all-time record of 109 titles still nine ahead, his body struggling to stay intact, and an ever-improving Spaniard and Italian, Djokovic’s future remains in question.
“That was the seventh Grand Slam tournament that either [Jannik] Sinner or [Carlos] Alcaraz won. So, you could already say there is a clear dominance of the rest of the field,” analysed the 6-time Grand Slam winner.
“For my taste, what’s missing is a number three or number four. Djokovic is trying hard, but he’s the fifth wheel again.
“He was with [Rafael] Nadal and [Roger] Federer, and now he is with Alcaraz and Sinner.”
