Former coach predicts how long Novak Djokovic will continue playing tennis

Novak Djokovic’s former coach Nikola Pilic predicted for how long the Serbian is going to play tennis as the 24-time Grand Slam winner has turned 36 and rumours about his retirement have started to spread widely.

Despite a remarkable 2023 campaign that saw Djokovic sweep three Majors, the Serbian had a painful end to his staggering 2023 season as he lost in the Davis Cup semi-final to Italy’s Jannik Sinner.

Pilic, who coached a young Djokovic at his academy in Munich, stated that the Serbian can compete at the highest level for two years provided he doesn’t suffer any kind of injury.

“It depends on his health condition, but in my opinion, if Djokovic is not injured, he has two more years of playing at the top level. If there are no injuries, he has two more years of playing among the top five tennis players,” explained the 84-year-old in an interview with Serbian news outlet Kurir.

“It doesn’t matter if he’s second or fourth, it’s important that he’s there. Knowing him and his professionalism and desire, it is very likely that there will be more than two, but I repeat, only Novak can know and only he can decide how long he will play.”

It must be noted that Djokovic recently clinched the ATP Finals after beating Jannik Sinner in straight sets in the final and confirmed that he has no intention to stop and is now aiming for a “Golden Slam” — winning all major titles and a gold medal in the Olympics — for the next year.

It is worth mentioning that Djokovic dominated the entire 2023 season as he featured in all four Grand Slam finals and won three of them — Australian Open, French Open, and US Open — while he was handed a defeat by Carlos Alcaraz at Wimbledon.

Djokovic will now aim to start his 2024 campaign by winning his favourite Australian Open, an accolade he has clinched 10 times total, the most in history.