Novak Djokovic’s mother Dijana has insisted that he could retire “right now” and call time on his illustrious tennis career having failed to match Roger Federer’s Wimbledon titles record earlier this month. Following the Serb’s SW19 final defeat to Carlos Alcaraz, both of his parents have called for their son to consider his future and walk away from the sport.
The 36-year-old has stepped into the veteran star role following Federer’s retirement and Rafa Nadal’s injury concerns, but seemed to enjoy that position at Wimbledon as he challenged the younger generation to challenge him before a thrilling five-set defeat to Alcaraz.
Though a huge amount of effort needs to be put in place to still be competing at the top of the sport at 36, something that both his parents have given their opinions on and feel that with all that he has achieved as the male with the most Grand Slam singles titles, it is enough to retire.
Speaking in a new documentary named Novak Djokovic – Untold Stories, Dijana Djokovic said: “It’s all up to him. As far as I’m concerned, he can retire right now – he has won everything.”
Djokovic’s father, Srdan, added: “As far as my wishes for him go, he has already fulfilled them all seven/eight years ago. The rest is this amazing bonus. Tennis is only one segment of his life, not his whole life. I expect him to be recognised for the things he will do after his career ends as well, after he leaves the tennis world, which I hope it will happen next year. And for Novak to slowly but surely… it’s not the end, but in a year-and-a-half let’s say.
“My wish as a father – I think for some time that he should have stopped working this extremely difficult job. It’s physically and mentally challenging and very demanding – with him being fully dedicated for 30 years, and not taking his foot off the gas, there is not much time for other things in life.”
Djokovic has pulled out of next month’s Canadian Open in a setback in his preparations for the US Open, but prior to Wimbledon he dismissed the suggestion that retirement would be in his near-future plans.
“Of course [the] journey is still not over,” he said. “I feel, you know, if I’m winning slams, why even think about, you know, ending the career that already has been going on for 20 years.
“So I still feel motivated, I still feel inspired to play the best tennis on these tournaments the most, you know, Grand Slams. Those are the ones that count I guess the most in history of our sport.”
For all the latest Sports News Click Here
For the latest news and updates, follow us on Google News.
