Novak Djokovic does not usually leave the door to retirement wide open. On Sunday, in a Cincinnati press room, he did.

“I certainly hope so, but unfortunately, at this point it seems more likely that I won’t,” he told reporters when asked whether he would be back at the Cincinnati Open in 2027.

The 39-year-old, 24-time Grand Slam champion had just lost 6-2, 4-6, 4-6 to Argentina’s Thiago Agustín Tirante, the world No. 50, in a match that lasted two hours and 45 minutes and pushed Djokovic well past the limits of what his body will now tolerate in extreme heat.

The condition he has kept private

For the first time, Djokovic tied that on-court struggle to something specific.

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“It’s because of a health issue I have. I’ve been dealing with it for many years now. It causes me a lot of problems, especially when there’s a lot of humidity and heat,” he said in the post-match press conference.

He did not name the condition. Djokovic bent double between points, took ice towels from a physio, and appeared to vomit at a changeover after a gruelling 18-minute third game in the second set, before taking a medical timeout that involved both a physiotherapist and a doctor.

A retirement question he did not close

Asked directly whether the end was near, Djokovic refused to shut the conversation down. He said he did not know what came next, and that returning to Cincinnati now looked unlikely rather than impossible.

His stated aim has been to end his career at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games with the Serbian flag in his hands.

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The Cincinnati defeat was his first competitive match since losing to Jannik Sinner in the Wimbledon semi-finals on 10 July. He also withdrew from the National Bank Open in Montreal in July, meaning he arrives at Flushing Meadows with a single match under his belt in almost seven weeks.

Arriving in New York cold

His 24 Grand Slam titles remain the men’s record, and the pursuit of number 25 now falls entirely on the US Open. The main draw at Flushing Meadows begins on Sunday, 30 August, with Djokovic also entered in the revamped mixed doubles event alongside Aryna Sabalenka on 25 and 26 August.

Tirante, who climbed from a ranking of No. 102 at the start of the year, offered his own summary of the afternoon.

“I think this is the best win of my career,” he said.

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