Novak Djokovic targeting gold at Paris 2024 Olympic Games ahead of Davis Cup tilt - ‘Huge desire of mine’
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Updated 20/03/2024 at 16:10 GMT
There seems to be an endless list of records that Novak Djokovic has broken during a stellar career, but he is yet to add an Olympic singles gold medal to his lengthy list of honours. The Serbian hopes that will change in 2024, after winning bronze in Beijing back in 2008. Following his recent seventh ATP Finals victory in Turin, the 36-year-old's focus is currently on the Davis Cup.
Djokovic: When Sinner and Alcaraz 'start to kick my butt' I'll consider retirement
Novak Djokovic says he has a "huge desire" to finally win a singles gold at the Olympic Games, with Paris 2024 in his sights as the place to add another honour to his record-breaking career.
The Serbian became the first player to win seven ATP Finals titles with a straight-sets win over Jannik Sinner on Sunday, and is now in Malaga in a bid to win the Davis Cup for Serbia.
Djokovic and his countrymen take on Great Britain on Thursday in the quarter-finals.
"Of course, the Olympics are a huge desire of mine – it’s a unique opportunity, I have a bronze from Beijing 2008,” Djokovic told Serbian reporters after his win in Turin.
“A lot of things are different at the Olympics – you can’t bring your whole team, some of the routines you usually have are limited; there are a lot of athletes from other sports, which gives you the energy on one hand, but it drains you on the other.
“All those things you mentioned – I want it all, why not, and we’ll see where it ends.”
The world No. 1 has seemingly no desire to call time on his illustrious career just yet and has said that he will carry on in the game until the more youthful trio of Sinner, Holger Rune and Carlos Alcaraz start beating him on a regular basis.
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Highlights: Djokovic wins record-breaking seventh ATP Finals title
"[Holger] Rune, Alcaraz and him [Sinner] are, you know, the big three, the next big three, if you want to call them,” said Djokovic after his ATP Finals victory.
“They're going to carry this sport. I will hang on for as long as I feel like hanging on.
“As long as I'm able to still win against them on the big stage I'll still keep going because you know, why stop if you're still winning the biggest titles.
“But once they start to kick my butt, then I'll consider having a little break or maybe a permanent break from professional tennis.”
Djokovic: Playing for Serbia 'the greatest honour'
For now, Djokovic's immediate focus is on representing his country.
He is part of a Serbia team in Malaga captained by Viktor Troicki, and which includes Laslo Djere, Dusan Lajovic, Miomir Kecmanovic, and Hamad Medjedovic.
Ahead of Thursday's tie with GB, Djokovic spoke of what it means to play for his country and shared his optimism that Serbia can lift the trophy for the first time since 2010.
"It's always the greatest honour and privilege to be part of the Serbian Davis Cup team," Djokovic said. "Davis Cup, we know it's the most valuable team competition in the history of tennis.
"We won it back in 2010 and it was a turning point for all of our individual careers. I personally had arguably the best season of my career in 2011, winning 40-plus matches in a row.
"So it was all, I think, credit to the Davis Cup win and the kind of feeling and the wave that we were riding after winning.
"It just felt so happy and so proud of the achievement, and the friendship that we built that year is something that we carry up to today."
Djokovic has won four straight tournaments since losing to Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final and admitted he is "not the freshest" but hopes his recent indoor prowess will carry him and his team to victory.
"I've been performing some of the best tennis I've ever performed really in the last four or five months," he added.
"Coming off from two great victories in Bercy and Turin, which are played indoors, obviously, so hopefully I can use that confidence and experience to contribute to Serbia."
The knockout phase of the Davis Cup has been staged in a Spanish city since a 2019 change of format that was led by the Kosmos investment group.
As part of the 25-year £2.15 billion plan fronted by former Spain and Barcelona defender Gerard Pique, the final stages of the iconic tournament became a season-ending event that was billed as the World Cup of Tennis.
But Djokovic has called for the Davis Cup Finals to travel to a new location each year and hit out at what he perceives to be a lack of communication from the International Tennis Federation (ITF).
"This is a competition that is played globally," Djokovic said. "It shouldn't stay in one place more than a year.
"Everyone should have their say because so far no-one has been really communicating with us from the ITF.
"I don't think we all agree. We will have probably difference of opinions, but the home-and-away ties is something the Davis Cup historically has been very famous for.
"Giving one nation to host the [Final] Eight for four years is too much. It has to travel."
The winner out of Serbia and Great Britain will meet either Italy or Netherlands in the semi-finals on Saturday, with the final to be played on Sunday at 3pm UK time.
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