FILE – Novak Djokovic of Serbia withdraws from the ATP Finals citing injury. (Photo by Fayez NURELDINE / AFP)
BELGRADE, Serbia—Novak Djokovic will not defend his ATP Finals title after ruling himself out Tuesday citing injury, leaving the season-ending event without a member of men’s tennis‘ Big Three for the first time in 23 years.
“I was really excited to be there, but due to an ongoing injury I won’t be playing next week,” Djokovic wrote on social media, without specifying what the problem is. “My apologies to those who were planning to see me.”
The eight-man tournament begins Sunday in Turin, Italy.
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Djokovic has won the ATP Finals a record seven times. He defeated current No. 1 Jannik Sinner to win the title last year.
Roger Federer, who announced his retirement in 2022, won the event six times after making his debut in 2002; Rafael Nadal, who is retiring after playing in the Davis Cup this month, was runner-up twice in the ATP Finals but never won it.
It has not been since 2001 that the tournament has been held without at least one of Djokovic, Federer or Nadal. This season was also the first since 2002 without at least one Grand Slam title for a member of that trio.
READ: Novak Djokovic admits to having the ‘worst tennis in history’ in his surprise exit from the US Open
Djokovic finishes the year with a 37-9 record but only one tournament championship: his first Olympic gold medal, which came at the Paris Games in August. That was his 99th tour-level title.
Djokovic did not add to his 24 Grand Slam trophies in 2024 and dealt with a meniscus tear in his right knee that required surgery and forced him to withdraw from the French Open before the quarterfinals. After withdrawing from the US Open in the third round, he played one Davis Cup match and then reached the final of the Shanghai Masters last month, losing to Sinner. He withdrew from the Paris Masters.
Joining Sinner in Turin will be Alexander Zverev, Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev, Taylor Fritz, Casper Ruud, Alex de Minaur and Andrey Rublev.
“I wish all the players a great tournament!” Djokovic said. “See you soon!”
