TENNIS
Djokovic won’t play in the Shanghai Masters
The current world No. 1 will take a long break after featuring in the Davis Cup for Serbia and will probably be back in action in Paris.
Tennis fans will have to wait to see the current US Open champion in action again, as Novak Djokovic has decided to take a break from the courts to recover and spend time with his family and friends.
Nole, who won the 24th major of his career after defeating Daniil Medvedev in straight sets at Arthur Ashe Stadium, had previously played in Cincinnati, where he defeated Carlos Alcaraz in one of the best three-set finals ever.
After lifting the trophy in the US Open, Djokovic flew to Valencia to help Serbia in their tie against Spain in the Davis Cup and he managed to defeat Alejandro Davidovich Fokina on Friday and played doubles on Saturday.
Djokovic won’t play in Shanghai
The Serb will now take some time off to recover and while there was the possibility of seeing him feature in the Shanghai Masters, he won’t be there.
“Shanghai has always been one of my favorite tournaments in the season. I will be missing my #NoleFam in China. I hope that I can come back to China in the future and play in front of all of you again”, he said on Twitter.
“It is disappointing not to have Novak at our tournament as it has always been a pleasure hosting him here,” said Shanghai Masters tournament director Michael Luevano.
Djokovic, who has won the tournament four times, will likely make his return in the last Masters 1000 of the calendar, in Paris.
Novak, who has reached all four Grand Slam events’ finals in 2023, will want to get to the Nitto Finals in top shape, and the Paris Masters offers him the chance to face the best players on the tour.
While the Serb won’t fly to China, Carlos Alcaraz, Holger Rune, and Jannik Sinner will make their debut in the tournament.