On Saturday, during the 2026 AO press conference, the ten-time champion Novak Djokovic said he’s grateful to have another shot at this iconic tournament. Just like all the other three major tournaments, Djokovic reached the SF here in Melbourne last year. But due to an unfortunate injury, he was forced to give a mid-match walkover to Alexander Zverev in that match. Other than injuries, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have been his biggest hurdles to the 25th Grand Slam triumph. Speaking to the reporters in Melbourne, Nole admitted he’s “missing a little bit of juice” in his legs at the later stages of a Grand Slam. But he’s ready to give his best to clinch his 25th major title.

Despite all the speculations about his retirement, he believes he still can beat anybody on any given day. Recently, during the press conference, the Serb opened up on a wide range of topics. From long-term future clarity to structural battles off the court and a physical hiccup leading into Melbourne.

Novak Djokovic addresses retirement plans ahead of the 2026 AO

The question of retirement inevitably circles every icon, and Novak Djokovic has learned to expect it. But he isn’t ready to entertain timelines. Recently, in an interview with Tennis 365, 17-time Grand Slam doubles champion Mark Woodforde made a very interesting statement. He said if Djokovic doesn’t post a good result at the AO, he wouldn’t be surprised if the Serbian superstar calls it a day. What is Djokovic’s response to all these speculations that have been making the headlines time and again in the last few years?

“I’ve been asked a lot about, obviously, when the end day is going to come for me, but you know, I don’t want to talk or think about it yet because I’m here. I’m competing. When that thing you know arrives and kind of becomes ripe in my head, I’ll share it with you, and then we can all discuss it on the farewell tour. But right now, I’m number four in the world, still competing at the highest level, and feel like there’s no need to draw attention to that discussion.”

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In essence, the 38-year-old tennis star is walking a delicate line, i.e., acknowledging his age-driven adjustments while refusing to let nostalgia overshadow his present ambitions. The message was clear – he isn’t done yet, and he doesn’t want the world treating him as if he is. Other than addressing his retirement speculations, Novak Djokovic also opened up on the off-court news that has been making a lot of buzz recently.

Novak Djokovic explains his PTPA exit

Alongside Vasek Pospisil, Djokovic co-founded the Professional Tennis Players Association in 2020 as a player-owned voice to challenge longstanding power structures within tennis. But the organization’s trajectory shifted sharply in 2025 when it filed sweeping lawsuits against the ATP, WTA, and ITF, accusing them of anti-competitive conduct. Novak Djokovic later admitted that he wasn’t comfortable with the legal tone, saying he felt some wording was “too strong.”

We saw American legend John McEnroe recently sharing his thoughts about Djokovic’s split with the PTPA. But during the press conference at the AO, the Serb again opened up on this topic, and he revealed the key reasons behind this split.

“It was a tough call for me to exit the PTPA, but I had to do that because I felt like my name was used, overused, in you know, pretty much every single article or communication channel. I felt like, you know, people, whenever they think about PTPA, they think it’s my organization, which is a wrong idea from the very beginning.”

Novak Djokovic stressed that the PTPA was meant to represent all players – men and women – not serve as a personal vehicle for him. ” I also didn’t like the way the leadership was taking the direction of the PTPA, and so I decided to step out. Does that mean that I’m not supporting PTPA? No, I am. I’m still wishing them all the best because I think there is room and there’s a need for a 100% players-only representation organization existing in our ecosystem.”

Having said that, he once again mentioned that the lawsuits also played a key role in his withdrawal. “I didn’t agree with everything that was in there, and I decided not to be one of the player plaintiffs. So that was also one of the big reasons.” He also said that he wants the vision to be clear to everyone, just as it was in 2020.

Despite John McEnroe publicly expressing surprise at Djokovic’s exit, the Serbian star emphasized he wants the group to succeed, just not with him as the figurehead.

Now, shifting our focus back to the 2026 Australian Open, Novak Djokovic also took a look back at the last few weeks heading into the ‘Happy Slam.’ What did he say?

Novak Djokovic talks about the setback right before the 2026 AO

Last year, Novak Djokovic played around 47 matches and won 37 of them. Although he reached the SF of all four major tournaments, he failed to reach at least one final for the first time since 2017. But he did manage to win two titles and completed an astonishing feat (100th and 101st ATP titles). But even last year, there were moments when we saw him struggle a bit physically.

The 2026 season also didn’t start quite well for the Serbian, as he was forced to withdraw from the Adelaide International. He felt he wasn’t “quite physically ready to compete” in that tournament.

While reflecting a bit on how things ended in 2025 and how it started with this setback in Adelaide, Novak Djokovic said, “I ended up the season in the first week of November, so it’s been a while since I played any competition, any official tournament. And you know, I took some time off and obviously took more time to rebuild my body because I understand in the last couple of years, that’s what changed the most for me. It takes more time to rebuild, and it also takes more time to reset or recover.”

Talking about his last-minute withdrawal from the Adelaide International, he added, “Unfortunately, I had a little setback that prevented me from competing at the Adelaide tournament. That’s why I didn’t go there physically.” But having said that, Djokovic has assured his fans that it’s been going very well so far, and he’s really looking forward to competing in Melbourne.

Novak Djokovic’s latest reflections paint a portrait of a champion balancing three realities – his evolving body, his legacy as a player advocate, and the constant chatter about retirement. Yet through it all, he remains grounded in the present moment, driven by the same competitive fire that has defined his historic career. But do you see him winning the AO title this year? Share your thoughts in the comment box.