Novak Djokovic takes a big risk at the 2025 Australian Open

Novak Djokovic’s decision to skip the 2024 Paris-Bercy Masters 1000 next week was quite surprising. After reaching the final in Shanghai and losing to Jannik Sinner, the Serbian legend seemed motivated for the season finale and was well positioned to enter the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin.

After the final in the penultimate Masters 1000 of the season, Nole played the ‘Six Kings Slam‘ in Saudi Arabia (where he lost again to Sinner, before beating his eternal rival Rafael Nadal in the final for third and fourth place). A few days later, the news was made public that the 37-year-old from Belgrade will not defend his title won last year in Bercy. At this point, it is safe to assume that the 24-time Grand Slam champion may decide to skip the ATP Finals (in which he is the defending champion) and focus directly on 2025.

At this time, the former world number 1 would qualify for the Finals waiting to hear the results of his opponents in the upcoming tournaments. To be honest, Djokovic had admitted very candidly that the ATP Finals were no longer a goal at this point of his career and that he would bet everything on the Grand Slam tournaments.

Nole’s ranking worries

In 2024, the Serbian champion won the gold medal at the Olympics, a goal he pursued throughout his career, but failed to take the 25th Major title. The former world number 1 will try to achieve this feat in 2025, perhaps already at the Australian Open, but it is worth clarifying one aspect.

If he skips the Nitto ATP Finals, where he lifted the trophy last year, Nole’s ranking could fall further. There is a serious risk that Novak could be out of the top eight in the ATP ranking and – if he does – he could face players like Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz already in the fourth round of the 2025 AO.

“Unfortunately, I will not be playing in Paris this year. I apologize to all who were looking forward to watching me play there. I wish all the…