Former British No.1 Throws Major Seeding Warning to Novak Djokovic Ahead of Roland Garros

Novak Djokovic is expected to return to the court at the 2026 Madrid Open.

Former British No.1 Throws Major Seeding Warning to Novak Djokovic Ahead of Roland Garros

Novak Djokovic (Image via X/Lacoste)

Former British No.1 Greg Rusedski has warned Novak Djokovic that his hopes of winning a 25th Grand Slam title could be crushed if he decides to pull out of more tournaments ahead of Roland Garros. Rusedski’s comments came days after Djokovic withdrew from the Monte Carlo Masters in Monaco.

Djokovic has maintained a stance of choosing which tournament to compete in on tour since the 2023 season. However, he has now begun to feature in fewer tournaments after each year, making it difficult for him to be at his best level before a Grand Slam tournament. At the Australian Open in January, he didn’t feature in any warm-up tournament ahead of the major event.

He was supposed to compete at the Adelaide International, but the former World No.1 pulled out of the tournament just days before the event kicked off, stating that he was not fully fit to play. However, he reached the final of the Australian Open, losing the title to Carlos Alcaraz in four sets in Melbourne.

After that, he only featured at the Indian Wells Open, where he reached the fourth round before 2025 champion Jack Draper defeated him in three sets. He then announced his withdrawal from the Miami Open and last week revealed that he was not going to play in the clay ATP 1000 tournament in Monte Carlo.

His absence from the tour has seen him drop to World No., with Alexander Zverev replacing him as World No.3 in the updated list. If the trend of pulling out of tournaments continues, Djokovic might find himself ranked outside the Top 5 before the French Open in Paris, which will see him face the likes of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner in the quarter-finals. Rusedski noted on the Off Court with Greg Rusedski podcast that Djokovic won’t be at his best before the French Open:

I think either Madrid or Rome will be his first week and then he will get ready for Roland Garros. It’s not about ranking points. It’s about where he’s seeded. He does need points to be in the top four.To win a major these days, you gotta usually go through Alcaraz and Sinner. Then imagine if he drops out of the top four, he might have to play [Alexander] Zverev. So for him, the important thing is keeping that top four ranking to give himself a shot at Wimbledon.

It is believed that the reason why Djokovic did not participate in the Monte Carlo Masters is that he didn’t win a match at the event last season. However, last year, he did reach the final of the Miami Open but lost to Jakub Mensik in straight sets, he decided not to defend over 600 points at the tournament this year.

Madrid Open director believes Novak Djokovic will play at the Madrid Open

Novak Djokovic’s withdrawal from the Monte Carlo Masters means that he has only two ATP 1000 tournaments to compete in before Roland Garros. The 38-year-old, who is going to turn 39 in May, is expected to play at either the Madrid Open or Italian Open, which will be a warm-up ahead of the second Grand Slam of the year.

Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic (Image via X/#AusOpen)

Last year, he played at the Madrid Open but failed to get past his opening match, and after that parted ways with Andy Murray. He didn’t compete at the Italian Open but returned to the court in Geneva, where he won his first title in almost a year. Madrid Open director Feliciano Lopez revealed on Radio Nacional that Djokovic will play at the Madrid Open:

He’s keen to come to Madrid, that’s what I’ve been told. Obviously, we know Djokovic’s schedule lately is what it is. He has the ability to play very little and still be fighting for the big titles at almost 40 years old.

It is no news that Djokovic is seeking to win his 25th Grand Slam. However, Roland Garros remains a place where he has won the fewest Grand Slams in his career. Last year, he reached the semi-finals of the Roland Garros but lost to Jannik Sinner in straight sets. He hopes to win the title for the first time since 2023.

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