Novak Djokovic suffers an injury setback and his ranking will now take a big hit
Novak Djokovic has started the 2026 season in encouraging form, but he has now been struck down by an injury that has ended his hopes of making an appearance at the Miami Open.
Djokovic was beaten in the final of last year’s ATP Masters 1000 event in Miami by Jakub Mensik and he would have had high hopes of another deep run in the second ATP Masters 1000 tournament of the season.
Yet it seems his gruelling battle with Jack Draper in the fourth round at Indian Wells earlier this week has left a lasting mark, with Djokovic confirming he will not be playing in Miami due to a shoulder problem.
Djokovic is a six-time winner of the Miami event and an eight-time finalist, with those two records matched only by the great Andre Agassi.
Now the Serbian legend will be denied the chance to improve on those all-time records in Miami, with his shoulder problem needing time to heal.
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Djokovic didn’t make any reference to an injury issue as he spoke to the media after losing a final set tie-break against Draper, in a match that was laced with quality on both sides of the net.
When asked how he would sum up his feelings after the match against the Brit, Djokovic said: “I mean, bitter feeling right now, losing a match like this. But proud of myself for fighting and really giving it all on the court. That’s for sure.
“That’s the one thing that I’ll take as a highlight, you know, just the fact of not giving up and trying. I mean, obviously I lost to a great player, and it was really such an even match throughout the entire two-and-a-half hours.
“Yeah, just a bit disappointed, of course, with getting off the court, fresh off the court. It is okay. I mean, I wish I could have done better, but it was a good fight.”
Djokovic would have been defending 650 ranking points if he had taken to the court in Miami, but those ranking points will now drop off his record.
That will allow Alexander Zverev to reclaim the No 3 ranking even if he fails to make good progress in Miami, with his run to the semi-finals in Indian Wells suggesting the German is finding some form that will give him hope of another deep run in the Sunshine State.
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Djokovic will now take some time away from tennis and his most likely return date will be the ATP 1000 tournament in Monte-Carlo at the start of the clay court season.
He will be keen to hang on to his place in the top four of the ATP Rankings ahead of the French Open and Wimbledon, as that would ensure he could not meet Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz until the semi-finals.
