Novak Djokovic… love him or hate him, he’s an exceptionally weird, charismatic and interesting man. Djokovic is 37 years old and entering his 22nd year on the professional tennis tour. He will try to win his 25th Slam title this year, despite picking up a knee injury last year. Djokovic didn’t win a Slam or an ATP title in 2024, but he did something even bigger: he finally won an Olympic gold medal. He has now completed every achievement in tennis – won every major multiple times, won every “big tournament” on the ATP tour multiple times, won Davis Cup, won the tour finals multiple times, and now he has a gold medal. Some people think he should have retired after the Olympics, because what else is there to conquer? But I understand why he didn’t retire – last year was all about Rafa Nadal and Andy Murray’s retirements, and I feel like Novak didn’t want to step on their toes. Plus, he really does want that 25th Slam. He’s currently in Melbourne, preparing for the Australian Open, which starts on Monday. Andy Murray is his new coach, lmao. Novak covers the February issue of GQ, and he talks about all of this, his rivalries with Nadal and Roger Federer, how he was deported from Australia in 2022 and more. Some highlights:
Why is he still playing? “Tennis is still my biggest megaphone to the world…But… I am thinking about how I want to end it and when do I want to end it. No, I’m going to take that back. I do think about more how than when. When I’m not thinking about it as of yet so intensely. How—How I would like to end it? I feel if I start to lose more and feel like there is a bigger gap, that I start to have more challenges in overcoming those big obstacles in big Slams, then I’ll probably call it a day. But right now I’m still okay, keep continuing.”
Why he believes he was deported from Australia in 2022: “That’s the actual reason why I was deported from Australia…That’s what the three federal judges said in the end. Their sentence is that they are not in a position to question the discretionary right of the [immigration] minister. It was so political. It had nothing really to do with vaccine or COVID or anything else. It’s just political. The politicians could not stand me being there. For them, I think, it was less damage to deport me than to keep me there. With my situation in Australia, I was proclaimed to be a villain number one of the world.”
He’s thinks “my body, my choice” is about vaccines: “My stance is exactly the same today as it was a few years ago. I’m not pro-vaccine. I’m not anti-vax. I am pro-freedom to choose what is right for you and your body. So when somebody takes away my right to choose what I should be taking for my body, I don’t think that’s correct.”
He had health issues after his deportation: “I had some health issues. And I realized that in that hotel in Melbourne I was fed with some food that poisoned me… I had some discoveries when I came back to Serbia. I never told this to anybody publicly, but discoveries that I was, I had a really high level of heavy metal. Heavy metal. I had the lead, very high level of lead and mercury.”
He never got Covid-vaccinated: “No, no. Because I don’t feel like I needed one. I just don’t feel like I needed one. I’m a healthy individual, I take care of my body, take care of my health needs, and I’m a professional athlete. And because I’m a professional athlete, I’m extremely mindful of what I consume, and I do regular tests, blood tests, any kind of tests. I know exactly what’s going on. So I didn’t feel a need to do that. Also, what is important to state is knowing that I’m not a threat to anybody. ’Cause I wasn’t. Because I had antibodies.”
The first words he thinks of to describe other tennis players: Roger Federer: “Elegance.” Rafael Nadal: “Tenacity.” Carlos Alcaraz: “Charisma.” Jannik Sinner: “Skiing.”
What he thinks of Alcaraz & Sinner: “It’s too early. But, you know, people say my records will never be broken. I doubt that. I mean, Carlos could be already the next guy. Even Jannik. If they take care of the body, if they do things in a proper way, focus on longevity, focus on the long-term, then they can do it. Carlos has done something no one has done in history for such a young age. So the odds are with him. He is going to complete his [career] Slam very soon. He’s even said himself, he wants to make history. He wants to be ‘the best in history.’ I respect that kind of mentality of ‘Hey, I think I got the goods.’ But maybe it’s a little bit early for him to think about history.”
His thoughts on Federer & Nadal, now that they’re both retired: “Well, I don’t see them. I don’t see them much. But the rivalry that we had between the three of us, the rivalries are eternal, I think. It’s just something that leaves an incredible mark and legacy on this sport. Something that will last forever. Something that I’m very proud of, very happy to be part of that group. They’ve been an integral part of my success and the history that I made of the sport. The rivalries with them have toughened me up like nothing has done throughout my career. So that’s on the tennis side. And privately it’s kind of going up and down, to be honest. I try to be always respectful and friendly to them off the court. But I didn’t have the acceptance early on, ’cause I did go out on the court saying and showing that I’m confident that I want to win. And I don’t think that both of them maybe liked that in the early days. Particularly because most of the players were going out to play them, not to win. And because of that confident stance, they probably were even more distanced from me. And that’s fine. I accepted it as it is. I understood the messaging that I got, which was we are rivals and nothing else. And to be quite frank, it’s very difficult to be a friend on the tour. If you are biggest rivals, and you’re constantly competing and you’re number one and two and three in the world, and for you to be close, go for dinners and family trips, it’s tough to expect that, to be honest.”
He wants to connect with Roger & Rafa in the years to come: “I think, with Roger, the last few times that I saw him, we talk about family, being on the road. And actually I do wish to connect with those guys more, on a deeper level. I really do. Whether that’s going to happen or not, I don’t know if they share the same desire or willingness. I do. I do want to…and let’s see, it depends how life is going to guide us or turn out for all of us. We live in different places and I think tennis is what brought so much to all of us. And tennis is probably still going to bring us together in some shape or form.”
I think people will always attack Novak for not being more like Roger or Rafa, for beating them so often in the last half of their careers, and then saying that he would actually love to spend time with them now. I take it at face value – he knows he shared something special with those two, and he’s hopeful that when all is said and done, they can some day sit down together and reminisce. The way he wept at Roger’s retirement said a lot to me, as did the fact that Roger wanted him there. As for the younger guys, he’s so wary of Sinner and Alcaraz, but I have to say, there are so many younger guys who just worship him.
Cover & IG courtesy of GQ.