Djokovic had barely sat down in the media room in Paris when one presenter opened the exchange by greeting him as the GOAT and asking whether he preferred to continue in English or French. He picked French. A second presenter went straight to the point: “Novak Djokovic, the GOAT. You are the GOAT.”

The seven-time Paris champion did not engage with either compliment, according to a report by Tennis World. Djokovic has pushed back on the greatest-of-all-time framing before, saying he is proud of what he has achieved but prefers to leave the debate to other people.

A compliment that landed at the wrong moment

The timing was awkward. Days later, Djokovic lost to Australian qualifier Rinky Hijikata 2-6, 6-3, 6-3 in the second round, ending his hopes of reaching the ATP Finals in Turin. It is only the second time in 20 seasons the 39-year-old has missed the year-end event when fit, after a 2017 elbow injury forced him out.

At his pre-tournament press conference, Djokovic had already told reporters his focus had shifted away from results and towards his body. “I see a lot of people who love giving their expert opinions, convinced they know exactly what I’m going through, but they don’t,” he told reporters in Paris.

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He described a season in which playing well had become a secondary concern to simply feeling good on court.

Outplayed by a world No. 83

After the Hijikata defeat, Djokovic was direct about where the match had slipped.

“He was switched on, I wasn’t serving as well and he was just playing out of his mind, honestly,” he told reporters in Paris. “He was not missing and keeping the ball low and just a terrific performance.”

Djokovic finished the ATP race in 10th place with 2,940 points, outside the eight who will play in Turin. Despite reaching the Australian Open final and the Wimbledon semi-finals, he has not made a Masters 1000 quarter-final all year. His last Grand Slam title remains the 2023 US Open.

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Asked about the coming weeks, his plan was one word: rest.

The ATP Finals run at the Inalpi Arena in Turin from 15 to 22 November 2026, with the final on the Sunday at 3pm local time.

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