Novak Djokovic plans to play into his 40s

Novak Djokovic revealed he has been inspired by Cristiano Ronaldo and LeBron James as he targets playing into his 40s.

The 38-year-old has gone two years without winning a grand slam title having been usurped by Carlos Alcaraz, who beat him in straight sets in last month’s US Open semi-final, and Jannik Sinner but he is not yet thinking about hanging up his racket.

Djokovic highlighted the long careers of basketball star James, footballer Ronaldo and now-retired American football quarterback Tom Brady as he reflected on what keeps him motivated.

Speaking at the Joy Forum in Riyadh ahead of appearing at the Six Kings Slam exhibition tournament, Djokovic said: “Longevity is one of my biggest motivations. I really want to see how far I can go.

“If you see across all the global sports, LeBron James, he is still going strong, he is 40, Cristiano Ronaldo, Tom Brady played until he was 40-something years old – it is unbelievable.

“They are inspiring me as well so I want to keep going, that is one of the motivations I have.”

Djokovic, who co-founded the Professional Tennis Players Association in 2020, is also hoping to use his influence to improve the sport.

Leading players are pushing the grand slams for a greater share of revenue, while the PTPA launched lawsuits against tennis’ governing bodies earlier this year in an effort to force through changes.

Djokovic added: “I want to also live to see – live meaning keep on playing professionally – what is coming for our sport and I am super excited about it.

“These are things I can’t be openly speaking about at the moment but, in the next couple of years, I feel like tennis is a sport that can be greatly transformed and I want to be part of that change, not just part of their change but I want to be playing when we kind of rejuvenate our sport and set the new platform that is going to go on for decades to come.”