Novak Djokovic gets honest on Jannik Sinner’s season-ending injury and reveals if he will ‘reach out’

Ewan West 08 Oct 2026 10:45 AM

Novak Djokovic with Jannik Sinner inset

Novak Djokovic has shared his thoughts on Jannik Sinner’s season-ending knee injury and revealed whether he will “reach out” to the Italian.

Sinner confirmed on Tuesday that his 2026 season was over due to a right knee injury which has sidelined him since he won Wimbledon in July.

The world No 1 withdrew from the Shanghai Masters last week, having already missed the entire North American hard-court swing, as well as the China Open.

Djokovic will star at the Masters 1000 tournament in Shanghai following his victory at the ATP 500 event in Beijing.

At his pre-tournament press conference in Shanghai, Djokovic was asked if had spoken to Sinner about his injury, and how this type of injury can define the career of a champion.

“Yeah, I haven’t been in touch with Jannik since he got injured. I saw the news, well, two days ago. I’ll reach out to him to see, you know, how he’s doing,” said the 24-time Grand Slam champion.

“I don’t know what it is, really. If somebody says it’s a knee… I’m not sure exactly. But as someone that has been through some major injuries in my career, one particularly that took me out for, you know, six, seven months was the elbow, you know, back in 2017. I had a surgery, and the only, like, big surgery that I had, really.

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“So, I’m aware of how difficult that is and making that comeback. If you’re away from the tour for so long, to make a comeback, you have to deal with more things than you normally have to deal with. Particularly mentally, on the mental side.

“Of course, physically, if you’re ready, you’re ready. You’re evaluating that with your team constantly, and you then come back to play at the highest level when you get the green light to be able to compete.

“But then it’s mental. You’re on the court and you’re thinking, am I really completely healed and free to make this run. I mean, for him, if it’s a knee, obviously it’s affecting everything. It’s affecting every single movement.

“So, yeah, I’m sure that he with his team is making wise choices. And, he’s been the best player in the world, and he’s been a dominant force for the last couple of years, along with Carlos. For sure, the tennis misses him.

“But at the same time, he has to think long-term. And this is what I think I saw that he said, that he’s thinking long-term. That’s smart because, as someone that is, that was always advised and always tried to have the big picture in my mind, I really support that kind of thinking and mindset.

“It’s important that you give yourself more years to your career, so you have more chances to accomplish all of your objectives.”