Novak Djokovic has sparked injury concern after withdrawing from the 2025 Cincinnati Masters for a second consecutive year.
The former world No 1 was due to return to the tour at the seventh Masters 1000 event of the season, having previously withdrawn from the Canadian Masters.
Djokovic also withdrew from both events in 2024, but was coming off a successful post-Wimbledon run at the Paris Olympic Games – which provided him with six extra matches.
The tennis legend’s most recent match was a 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 defeat to world No 1 Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals of Wimbledon, marking a fifth-consecutive loss to the Italian.
Most worryingly, Djokovic suffered a nasty slip at the end of his quarter-final clash against Flavio Cobolli, a match prior.
During his encounter against Sinner, the Serb looked heavily compromised in the second half of the match, unable to utilise his signature defensive repertoire.
“Honestly, wasn’t really a pleasant feeling on the court,” he commented, during his post-match press conference.
“I don’t want to talk, in details, about my injury and just whine about not managing to play my best. I want to congratulate Jannik for another great performance. That’s it. He’s in the finals. He was too strong.
“I do feel, yeah, disappointed that I just wasn’t able to move as well as I thought or hoped that I would.
“I don’t think it’s bad fortune. It’s just age, the wear and tear of the body. As much as I’m taking care of it, the reality hits me right now, last year and a half, like never before, to be honest.
“It’s tough for me to accept that because I feel like when I’m fresh, when I’m fit, I can still play really good tennis. I’ve proven that this year.
“But yeah, I guess playing best-of-five, particularly this year, has been a real struggle for me physically. The longer the tournament goes, yeah, the worse the condition gets.
“I reach the final stages, I reach the semis of every slam this year, but I have to play Sinner or Alcaraz. These guys are fit, young, sharp. I feel like I’m going into the match with tank half empty. It’s just not possible to win a match like that.
“It is what it is, you know? It’s one of these things I accept and embrace in some way, deal with the reality the way it is, and try to make the most out of it, I guess.”
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The withdrawal means that Djokovic will enter the US Open without any hard-court preparation, having not played a match for around 44 days by the time that the event begins.
Despite the highly-unusual situation, the Serb has a stunning record at the season’s last Grand Slam.
Overall, he has reached the showpiece match on ten occasions, winning four such matches.
Djokovic has also won 90 out of his 104 matches – an 87% win rate.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion’s most recent campaign ended with a 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 defeat to Alexei Popyrin in the third round, which was his earliest loss since 2006.
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