‘I feel… ending the career…’: Novak Djokovic drops retirement update after winning record-breaking 23rd Grand Slam title

Novak Djokovic stole the show in Roland Garros, defeating Casper Ruud in the French Open men’s singles final to clinch a historic 23rd Grand Slam title. The feat saw him set a new men’s singles record, surpassing Rafael Nadal. The Serbian ace sealed a 7(7)-6(1) 6-3 7-5 victory and was in stunning form.

Already 36-years-old, Djokovic turned up a notch in Grand Slams. Speaking after his win against Ruud, Djokovic was clear about his future and it looks like he won’t be retiring anytime soon. He also went on to reveal that Grand Slams inspire him to play his best tennis.

“Of course the journey is still not over. I feel, you know, if I’m winning slams, why even think about, you know, ending the career that already has been going on for 20 years. So I still feel motivated, I still feel inspired to play the best tennis on these tournaments the most, you know, Grand Slams. Those are the ones that count I guess the most in history of our sport”, he said.

The win has also pushed Djokovic back to world no. 1 in the ATP rankings, toppling Carlos Alcaraz. The young Spaniard lost to Djokovic in the French Open semi-finals, and is now ranked second, followed by Daniil Medvedev, Ruud and Stefanos Tsitsipas.

After Djokovic won his 23rd Grand Slam title, the Serbian spoke about his upbringing and praised his mother. “My upbringing was probably different than most of the other players from my generation. Going back to the 1990s when I was four, five years old, and we had couple of wars,” Djokovic told a press conference after winning his third French Open title by defeating Norway’s Casper Ruud in straight sets”, he said.

“Serbia had embargo. I couldn’t travel for quite a few junior tournaments. So there was a lot of adversity and it was a very challenging time for everyone in my country. My family was on a very low budget. But my parents still decided to support me in my dream, which was to become a professional tennis player and hopefully win Wimbledon and be number one in the world.

“My mother is a rock. She’s an incredible woman who kept the family together in the toughest moments. My father is an incredibly driving force of the family, someone who has instilled in me such power of belief and positive thinking”, he further added.