Novak Djokovic Declares His Grand Slam Obsession in Bold US Open Statement

When Novak Djokovic pulled out of the two Masters 1000 tournaments, the Canadian Open and the Cincinnati Masters, question marks were raised over his longevity in the sport. With no warm-up matches, fans felt that Djokovic’s chances at the upcoming US Open were diminished. However, the Serb trained hard away from the limelight and is ready to go at the major event at Flushing Meadows. Ahead of the tournament, he broke his silence on why he decided to skip the two events.

With 24 Grand Slam titles in his kitty, Djokovic wants to add a major title to complete a record 25 wins. He last won a Grand Slam title back in 2023 at this very tournament. However, he has struggled for the majority of the time after winning his last major tournament. During an interview with Sky Sports, Djokovic made a bold statement on his 25th major win while reasoning out his absence at the Masters tournaments.

Novak Djokovic said, “I’m prioritizing Grand Slams obviously, thrice I wanted to play my best tennis, and those are the tournaments where magic happens. Being a tennis player in a Grand Slam is no higher a peak to climb.”

The Serb was hugely criticized for skipping most of the Masters tournaments this year. However, Djokovic has his reasons, both personal and professional, to select the tournaments he wants to play. He also added, “I decided not to play because I wanted to spend more time with my family. And to be honest, you know, I think I earned my right and have the luxury of kind of choosing, picking and choosing where I want to go and what I want to play.”

With this revelation, it is unlikely that Djokovic will play any further Masters tournaments this year. His sole goal is winning one more Grand Slam title and manage his schedule accordingly. Moreover, Djokovic also had something to say about the 2-week-long Masters tournaments. He wasn’t a big fan of this and made his feelings felt.

Novak Djokovic slams Masters tournaments for hectic schedule

Like Grand Slam tournaments, the Masters tournaments follow a 2-week schedule. Amid a cramped tennis calendar, this causes unnecessary congestion, as they can be accommodated in a week as well. Djokovic highlighted this point while calling out the poor scheduling of these tournaments.

Talking about this, Novak Djokovic said, “To be quite frank with you, I don’t enjoy the two-week Masters events anymore. It’s just way too long for me. My focus is mostly on the Slams, and I have said that before. But I also like other tournaments. I’d like to play more of the other tournaments, but I just—we have currently informally, unofficially, 12 Grand Slams a year, you know, when you think about it. I mean, Grand Slam is two weeks, and the other Masters events are almost two weeks as well. So yeah, it’s just not any more prioritising the heavy schedule as I used to.”

Djokovic will open his campaign against 19-year-old Learner Tien at the US Open, a player who is slowly and steadily rising on the ATP Tour. It could prove to be an exciting clash to watch for the fans, and Djokovic will have to be at his best to overcome the challenge of the young American. The match can be followed on EssentiallySports’ Live Blog.