“It’s crazy humid, to be honest. I don’t recall the weather being so humid in China,” Novak Djokovic, the 24-time slam king, shared his honest thoughts on the conditions, last week, at the Shanghai Masters. The 38-year-old has been struggling to maintain his fitness levels at the Masters event. It further became evident after he was having a tough time during the second round on Sunday. The growing humidity pushed him to an extent where he was seen throwing up on the court. But here comes an unexpected move from the former World No.1.

Amidst health concerns still looming, Djokovic has taken a shocking decision going forward in the current season. According to latest report, as shared by Jose Morgado on X, the Serbian has opted to compete at the ATP 250 event in Athens next month. For the uninitiated, the Hellenic Championship’s license is owned by Djokovic’s family. Previously, the tournament was held in Belgrade (in Djokovic’s home country of Serbia). From this year onwards, Athens will become its new host. Interestingly, the capital city of Greece has become the former World No.1’s new home as well. Recently, he settled in Athens permanently with his family following political tensions in Serbia.

In his match against Yannick Hanfmann, Djokovic was seen finding it tough to cope with the heat in Shanghai. The temperatures touched 30C degree. On top of it, the humidity was at 70 percent to make the matters even worse.

Even during his first round encounter against longtime rival Marin Cilic, Djokovic had to face hot weather conditions. He has been at the event in the past, winning the trophy six times, but the Serbian never experienced such issues. “I don’t remember the last time I played in humidity like this. It is what it is… It’s the same for me, my opponent, and every other player.”

Being a professional, he couldn’t complain although the conditions have been overwhelming. “You just have to accept it, deal with it. A lot of sweating. The laundry bills will be quite high this week, but that’s okay.” Following the latest win, which was not easy at all, the former World No.1 expressed his unfiltered thoughts on Sunday.

Novak Djokovic speaks on his health after R32 match in Shanghai

As if the weather conditions weren’t enough to pose challenges, Novak Djokovic’s R32 opponent proved quite determined. Germany’s Yannick Hanfmann stunned the Serbian by snatching the first set. While the 38-year-old managed to make a strong comeback and advance ahead in the event, after a marathon 2-hour-45-minute struggle, the victory came at a cost of his health.

During the press conference, Djokovic didn’t mince words in explaining how he felt in the battle against Hanfmann. Especially when it comes to the humidity forcing him to throw up in the middle of the match. “It’s brutal when you have over 80 per cent of humidity day after day, particularly for the guys when they’re playing during the day with heat, with sun, it’s even more brutal.” reported ATP Tour’s website on October 5.

He added, “For me, biologically it’s a bit more challenging to deal with it. But I had to really weather the storm today.” Djokovic admired his opponent’s performance as well saying, “Yannick played an incredible match from the beginning.”

Taking inspiration from supportive Chinese fans throughout his campaign, he concluded, “It’s incredible to be here playing in front of a very passionate crowd. First couple matches, packed stadium, one of the nicest and biggest stadiums we have in sports,” while stating “I’m grinding for almost three hours, third round of a Masters at 38 with the full stadium cheering my name. It’s a dream come true for me so I’m very thankful.”

Next up, Djokovic is set to play against Spain’s Jaume Munar on Tuesday. After seven years, they will meet again. Their only face-off took place back in 2018 during the French Open. That time, the Serbian had the last laugh in R64 as he beat Munar in straight sets.