Novak Djokovic has been hinting at retirement all year this season. It’s not all baseless; there’s an absence of trophies in the Serb’s resume for the year. Despite sweetening his laudable record by reaching a Slam final at Wimbledon and clinching the elusive Olympic gold, his upcoming touring commitments have been under question. Naturally, his old rival had to step in to disclose his insight into the matter.

Doubts surrounding Nole’s participation in the year-end ATP Finals have started to reach the summit. After enduring an early exit in New York, the Serbian star jetted to Shanghai. Although he lost the title to Italian Jannik Sinner, Djokovic later stayed true to his reservations and marked his appearance at the Six Kings Slam in Riyadh, wherein he clashed with arch-nemesis Rafael Nadal for the final time ahead of the Spaniard’s slated retirement at the Davis Cup in November. However, Nole’s abrupt withdrawal from the Paris Masters triggered social media.

While some fans calculated his chances to qualify for the race to Turin, and some expected his calendar to have concluded for the year. All this came following Djokovic’s admission that the year-end event isn’t his main goal: “Turin is not my goal at all, to be honest, I am not chasing ATP Finals, I am not chasing the rankings,” said Djokovic after playing for Serbia in the Davis Cup in September.” During a sitdown with the ‘Tennis Channel Live Podcast‘, the 2003 US Open champion iterated Nole’s stance from three weeks ago, wherein he hinted at snubbing the highly-anticipated championship.

“He[Djokovic] said three weeks ago that ‘I don’t think he’s gonna ever play year-end finals ever again'”, Roddick said. “So my opinion naturally would be I don’t think he’s gonna ever play year-end finals ever again. You don’t often go from Maldives to year-end finals. That would be a new kind of point of origin in your final playing process. But listen,

Novak’s at the point in his career where he needs to play when he’s motivated. He’s not gonna be interested in making a semi of any event. He wants to win slams. That’s it. I also was te dummy who thought three weeks wasn’t enough time for him to play Wimbledon and what he’s do is play finals. So nothing would ever surprise me But listen, I bet you lunch that he ain’t showing up in Turin.” 

As things stand, the Serb is currently vacationing with his family in the Maldives – casting more doubts on his return. Truth be told, there’s another reason why Djokovic is missing out on crucial events. Prioritizing his family took the backseat for far too long.

Novak Djokovic hopes to be the ‘ideal father’ for his children

Not that I would know, but life seemingly updates to an unknown server after children are welcomed. With no clue on how to manage this newfound phase, most people, with time, adjust and cater to their children’s needs. That’s the kind of father Novak Djokovic wants to be for his two kids, Stefan and Tara. While his love knows no bounds when the subject ‘family’ comes up, a year-long hectic touring commitment takes time away from home.

During an exclusive feature with ‘LA NACION in October, Djokovic expressed to be an around-the-clock father for his children. “It is important they see me as a father in the real sense of the word, as a father who is at home, with them, who follows the routine, the time to go to bed, to get up, take them to school, talk to them about life, play with them. That’s the person I want to be for them, not the father “Novak Djokovic” who is outside.”

The 2024 tennis season is winding down for Djokovic, with only a potential appearance in Turin on the horizon. However, even his participation in the year-end championships is shrouded in doubt, given his own statement. After recouping and enjoying vacations with his family, Nole will be expected to return to the Australian Open in 2025.