After missing the Toronto Masters 1000, Novak Djokovic has announced that he will not be present in Cincinnati from August 7 to 18 either. The former world No. 1 had missed the prestigious Masters 1000 in Ohio last season, but it was a more understandable decision given that the Serbian legend had just won the gold medal at the Paris Olympics.
The 38-year-old from Belgrade has not played an official match since the semi-final of the Wimbledon Championships against current World No.1 Jannik Sinner, in which he was not at the top of his shape due to a muscle problem and was clearly defeated on the iconic Centre Court.
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Nole spent his holidays in Croatia and Greece and has not returned to practice yet, but everyone knows that the Majors are his only goals at this stage of his career. His goal is to arrive fresh at the US Open, scheduled in New York from August 24 to September 7, where he triumphed for the last time in 2023.
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Djokovic will also play the mixed doubles tournament alongside Olga Danilovic in the Big Apple and it will be a good test to assess his condition, but fans would certainly have preferred to see him in action in Cincinnati (where he won two years ago after an amazing final against Alcaraz). In a press conference after his defeat at Wimbledon, the former world No.1 admitted that his body no longer gives him the same guarantees as in the past and added that it will be very difficult to beat Jannik Sinner and Carlitos Alcaraz again in best-of-five sets.
As if that were not enough, the veteran from Belgrade could be overtaken by Alex de Minaur in the ATP rankings. The Australian ace is playing his best tennis on the hard courts and after lifting the trophy in Washington reached the quarterfinals at the Toronto Masters 1000. Alex will face American star Ben Shelton for a spot in the semifinals today in the night session. Another player who could overtake Novak at the end of the Canadian tournament is Shelton, who needs to win the title in Ontario.
