LONDON — After the clear loss in the Wimbledon Finale, Serbian record-Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic sets his sights on the Olympic Games in Paris.
“I still intend to participate in the Olympics and hopefully fight for a medal for my country,” said the 37-year-old after his 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (4) loss to Carlos Alcaraz.
Djokovic vowed to get back to work after being outplayed by Carlos Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final less than 1 1/2 months after knee surgery, with the intention of contending for a gold medal at the Paris Olympics and a record 25th Grand Slam title at the US Open.
“In the face of adversity, normally I rise and I learn and get stronger,” Djokovic said. “That´s what I´m going to do.”
Djokovic remains second in the ATP Rankings and sixth in the Race. Among the top-10 players, only he and Medvedev are still without titles in 2024.
The 2024 Olympic Games will take place in Paris from July 26 to August 11.
In Grand Slam play, Djokovic was eliminated by current No. 1 Jannik Sinner in the Australian Open semi-finals in January, then reached the quarter-finals at the French Open but needed to pull out before that round after tearing the meniscus in his right knee.
He had an operation on June 5 and wasn’t sure he would be able to enter Wimbledon at all until a few days before the draw.
“My preparation for Wimbledon wasn´t as I would have it normally. There was hindrance obviously because of the injury,” Djokovic said according to AP.
The gold medal at the Olympics remains an elusive achievement for Djokovic. The Serbian has participated four times, earning a bronze in 2008 but finishing fourth in 2012 and 2020, and experiencing a shocking first-round exit in 2016. This may be his last chance to achieve Olympic glory.
There are still significant challenges ahead for Djokovic this season, and he can turn around his difficult year marked by inconsistent results and injuries. The world No. 2 is less focused on rankings and more on achieving historical milestones, with the Olympics in two weeks being one of his major goals.
“That probably had an effect, particularly in the opening rounds. But as the tournament progressed, I felt better and better. I reached the finals. Some matches I played some really good tennis. Some matches I kind of battled my way through. But today, I saw that I was just half a step behind him, in every sense.”
With a gray sleeve covering his right knee, Djokovic won just 27 of 53 points when he went to the net and finished with 26 winners to Alcaraz´s 42.
Djokovic was broken five times and only won one of the 21-year-old Alcaraz´s service games.
“Being able to reach the finals of Wimbledon … (is) a great confidence boost. But I also feel like in a matchup today against the best player right now in the world, for sure – I mean, other than Jannik, and both of them are the best this year by far – I feel like I´m not at that level,” Djokovic said.
“In order to really have a chance to, I guess, beat these guys in Grand Slam latter stages or Olympics,” he added,
Still, like most people, Alcaraz was impressed that Djokovic managed to make it all the way to the final at Wimbledon.
“What he has done this tournament – with a surgery just before a few weeks before the tournament – (began) is amazing. It is unbelievable.”
The next goal for Djokovic is the Summer Games; the tennis competition starts at Roland Garros on July 27.
An Olympic gold is pretty much the only accolade missing from a resume that includes 10 titles at the Australian Open, seven at Wimbledon, four at the US Open – where his title defense begins on Aug. 26 – and three at the French Open, along with a total of 98 tour-level titles and more weeks spent at No. 1 in the rankings than any other player.
He’ll analyze where there’s room for improvement. He’ll train and practice to try to be at his best.
What he won’t do is harbor regrets about what he could have done differently against Alcaraz on this particular afternoon in England.
