Novak Djokovic, after losing his Wimbledon final against Carlos Alcaraz, has already turned his thoughts to two of the most important events of the rest of the season: the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and the US Open, as he himself revealed in the press conference after the Championships.
“The Olympic Games and the US Open are the two big goals for the rest of the year and I hope to be able to give my best in both cases. I hope to have the opportunity to fight for a medal for my country. It will be on a completely different surface, returning to the place where I got injured a few weeks ago. We will see how I feel physically and mentally. I hope to be able to find my best tennis, because I will need everything I have and even a little bit more to reach the final of the Olympic Games,” he said.
And speaking of Paris Olympcs, the outfit that the Serbian will wear in the Olympic tournament has finally been revealed. Djokovic will wear a red polo with blue inserts on the sides and collar combined with white shorts. The shoes will be white textured with his technical logo that features the colors of the Serbian flag, red and blue.
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The Serbian is aware that he will have to raise the bar to give himself a chance at both the Paris Olympics and the US Open.
“Being able to reach the final at Wimbledon is a great confidence boost, but I feel that I am not at the level that is needed to beat the best in the world. To have a chance to beat Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, who are the best this year by far, in the final stages of a Slam or at the Olympics I will have to play much better. I will work, we are not talking about something I have never faced before. In adversity, usually, I learn lessons and become stronger,” explained the 37-year-old eat the press conference after the Wimbledon final.
Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic © Getty Images Sport – Clive Brunskill
When asked about his future, Djokovic replied: “As for returning to Wimbledon, I would definitely like to. I don’t think at all that this is my last Wimbledon. I really want to play again, I have no limits in my mind. I will play as long as I feel I can do it at this high level.”
The Serbian champion never really managed to get into the match and, after losing the first two sets with a double 6-2, he threw in the towel in a tie-break played in a lackluster manner. The defeat against Alcaraz prevented Djokovic from matching the record of 8 titles on the lawns of the All England Club that belongs to Roger Federer, but not only that. Djokovic has not yet won a tournament in 2024 (the Championships was his first final of the season – ed.) and this is a worrying fact. In fact, it has not happened since 2005 that the Serbian champion arrived in August without having won even one title. A statistic that highlights the great difficulties that are characterizing his year. Djokovic can obviously consider himself proud of the result achieved at Wimbledon a few weeks after the meniscus operation he underwent after the injury suffered at Roland Garros during the match against Francisco Cerundolo.
The 37-year-old will now try to focus on the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, an event that has been marked on the calendar for a long time. Djokovic’s dream is to win a historic gold medal for his country on the Parisian clay, and to do so, he will have to find his best tennis.
Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic © Getty Images Sport – Handout
Meanwhile, as reported by Sportklub, the former world number one has argued that his defeats always have greater resonance in the media.
“It makes sense that people are talking about these things now, it seems like they are always looking for headlines like this and great news. A lot of people are not happy that I am still among the best, so they are eager for a change. It is an intrinsic part of my sporting career and I always manage to work, perform and live with it. Obviously, the bigger the tournament I lose, the more media coverage it will have. Carlos’ results make it worth talking about a generational change on his part and Sinner is doing very well this year, but these results need to be validated over time. There are people who have not even come close to winning Grand Slam titles and they make these statements. In any case, words are carried by the wind,” he said. The time of the Paris Olympics is approaching, the perfect opportunity to silence the critics and show that it is not yet time to leave space for others.