Novak Djokovic has revealed he is dealing with an ongoing elbow injury and had to take painkillers before playing in the final of the Athens Open.
The former world No.1 claimed his 101st ATP title on Saturday with a marathon three-hour win over Lorenzo Musetti in the Greek capital. Djokovic went into the match unsure whether he would play in the year-end ATP Finals, which he has won a record seven times. Due to the uncertainty, Musetti was in a situation where he had to win the title in order to automatically qualify for the tournament.
However, just seconds after Djokovic won the match, he appeared to tell Musetti at the net that he would not be playing in Turin. Musetti later confirmed this during his press conference before an official announcement was made. The timing of the decision has raised questions about why Djokovic left it so late to pull out of the ATP Finals, knowing that it would have a big impact on some of those playing at the event.
Responding to the criticism, the Serbian insisted that he had hoped to play next week and was ‘optimistic’ that he would be able to do so as late as Friday. However, he told reporters in Athens that the pain in his elbow is too significant and he wouldn’t be able to play at the required level.
“It’s been an issue all week,” Djokovic said about his elbow. “That’s why I didn’t want to make a decision about Turin early, I wanted to see how my body would react to the matches.
“After the semi-final I was optimistic, but today (Saturday), even before the final, I didn’t feel well. I had to take strong medication to be able to play.
“Now that the effect of it is wearing off, I don’t expect a good feeling in the shoulder. I can’t compete at the level needed for a tournament like the ATP Finals. I have to play the day after tomorrow (Sunday) and there’s just no time to recover.”
Throughout his career, Djokovic has qualified for the ATP Finals a record 18 times. A milestone that has only been matched by Roger Federer. Overall, he has a win-loss record of 50-18 at the event.
“It’s very sad for me, because I like playing indoors and in Turin I had success,” Djokovic continued.
“The fans there are great. Honestly, I’m sorry. But at least Musetti will be there, so something positive comes out! I wish everyone a wonderful tournament and I hope to have another opportunity to participate next year.”
From 2026, the ATP has confirmed the cutoff tournament for year-end Finals qualification will be the Paris Masters and not the tournaments taking place a week before the event starts. Giving all players more time to prepare.
