By Richard Pagliaro | Tuesday, November 11, 2025
Photo credit: Carl De Souza/AFP/Getty
Novak Djokovic dreams of closing his career with glittering farewell.
The 38-year-old Serbian superstar defeated Lorenzo Musetti to capture his 101st career championship in Athens on Saturday.
While much of the tennis world focuses on Djokovic’s quest for a record-extending 25th career Grand Slam crown, he cites one very special tournament as his ideal exit event.
The reigning Olympic gold-medal champion said he dreams of representing Serbia at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games.
“I’ve always had this throughout my life and my career, I’ve always had a schedule in my head for a year or more, what I want, how I want it,” Djokovic told the media in Athens.
“Since I’ve achieved absolutely all possible goals, I said about the 2028 Olympics because I wanted to play for so many more years. So maybe ending up at the Olympic Games with the Serbian flag, that would be nice.”
The man who reached semifinals at all four Grand Slams this season claimed his last major crown at the 2023 US Open.
At the 2024 Paris Olympics, Djokovic defeated Matthew Ebden, archrival Rafael Nadal, Dominik Koepfer, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Lorenzo Musetti and Carlos Alcaraz, 7-6, 7-6, to capture his maiden gold medal without surrendering a set. Djokovic may well feel the Olympic Games’ best-of-three-set format gives him a greater chance of beating either Alcaraz or Jannik Sinner than the best-of-five sets of Grand Slam play.
The former world No. 1’s comments about closing the curtain on his brilliant career in Los Angeles echo remarks he made earlier this season.
“The only thing I think about and the only thing that motivates me is the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games,” Novak told Slaven Bilic in an interview in June.
In Paris, Djokovic made history as the oldest man to play the Olympic tennis gold-medal match and win gold.
If Djokovic does play the Los Angeles Games, he’d be 41 years old by then. Djokovic is one of only three men in history aged 30 or older to play in an Olympic gold medal match.
His rise to gold in Paris was historic: Djokovic joined Steffi Graf, Andre Agassi, Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams as one of five players to have won all four majors and an Olympic gold medal in singles.
After setting the gold standard, the Serbian superstar called it “arguably the biggest success I ever had.”
“I’m too proud, too happy, thrilled with the possibility to fight for the gold and to win the gold for the first time in my career for my country. Arguably, the biggest success I ever had,” Djokovic said.
“Of course, I’ve won everything there is to win probably in my individual career. But winning Davis Cup and particularly winning golden medal at the Olympic Games at age 37 is unprecedented.”
