Will Novak Djokovic face a rankings collapse after his latest schedule change?

Kevin Palmer 27 Mar 2026 7:00 PM

Novak Djokovic reacts during his match

Novak Djokovic’s future in tennis has been the subject of plenty of debate over the last couple of years and a fresh debate may now be sparked over his future after he opted to withdraw from next month’s Monte Carlo Masters.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion has played a limited schedule over the last couple of years, after he openly admitted he is struggling to find motivation to play in regular ATP Tour events as his career winds towards a conclusion.

So it was no surprise when it was confirmed that Djokovic would miss the first ATP Masters 1000 event of the clay court season, with tournament organisers confirming the news with an announcement on Friday.

“Novak Djokovic has withdrawn from the tournament,” the statement read. “We send him our best wishes and hopes to see him back on court very soon.”

Djokovic will be nearly 40 by the time the next Monte-Carlo Masters rolls around, so it may be that he has played his final match at a venue where he is a two-time champion and he withdrew from the event knowing that it will not have a big impact on his ranking.

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Djokovic lost his first match in Monte-Carlo last year against Chile’s Alejandro Tabilo, so only five ranking points will drop off his total when he misses the tournament this year.

He also only has five points to defend after an early exit at last year’s Madrid Open, so he may also be tempted to skip that event and could have the option of playing at the Rome Masters before an assault on the French Open title at Roland Garros.

Winning the clay court Grand Slam in Paris may be the toughest challenge for Djokovic and that inspired former British No 1 Tim Henman to float the idea that Djokovic may not play at Roland Garros and focus his efforts on trying to win a record breaking 25th major title at Wimbledon a few weeks later.

“I will be very interested to see how much he plays on the clay,” Henman told Sky Sports Tennis. “That is the most physically demanding surface. Will he play something before the French? Will he play the French at all? Will he just focus on the grass? Who knows.

“I can see a scenario where he doesn’t play in Paris, but let’s see.”

Speaking at Indian Wells earlier this month, Djokovic insisted his motivation to continue at the top of the sport remains strong, with his win against Jannik Sinner at the Australian Open in January confirming he can still compete with the big hitters in the current game.

“It was an incredible feeling to be able to beat Sinner in five sets in one of the epic matches that I played in recent times in Australia, and then have another great match with Carlos, who was just too good in the end,” Djokovic told reporters at Indian Wells.

“For me, that has been a phenomenal result. So I have proven to myself primarily and to others that I can still compete at the highest level and ‌beat these ⁠guys,” he said.

“So my logic is why not keep going as long as I have that fire and flair and quality and the motivation to do that.

“I really enjoy the thrill of competition. I enjoy still getting out there in front of the fans and being competitive. Still number three in the world, so I don’t think it’s too bad ⁠in terms of the ranking and results and performances.

“So I’m still competitive. I still have that edge, and I’ll keep on going as long as I feel like it.”