Novak Djokovic Dedicates US Open Win to his Daughter After Missing her Birthday

Novak Djokovic will take on Taylor Fritz for the eleventh time on tour in the quarter-finals of the US Open.

Novak Djokovic Dedicates US Open Win to his Daughter After Missing her Birthday

Novak Djokovic (via X/Djokovic fan)

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Novak Djokovic dedicated his fourth-round win at the US Open to his daughter, Tara, after missing her birthday. The 38-year-old rarely looked troubled against German qualifier Jan-Lennard Struff at the Arthur Ashe Stadium, showing his quality and pedigree despite struggling with the physical conditions.

Djokovic showed signs of wear and tear during his match against Struff as he had to call for the physio twice, treating a neck issue early and a problem with his right forearm. That didn’t hamper the rhythm of the former World No.1 as he hit 33 winners and 12 aces. He was never broken and had no double faults in the match.

Struff, who had stunned top 20 stars Holger Rune and Frances Tiafoe, couldn’t find his aggressive style of play against Djokovic, as he was broken six times. He double-faulted six times, while hitting just six aces, six less compared to Djokovic. But he’s major issues came from his serve as he won just 66 percent of his first-serve points compared to Djokovic’s 77 percent.

Djokovic claimed the win 6-3, 6-3, 6-2 in one hour and forty-nine minutes to reach the quarter-finals. After having a handshake with Struff and the umpire, he unveiled his recent victory celebration by mimicking his daughter, Tara, playing a violin with his tennis racket. Tara is Djokovic’s second child with his wife Jelena.

After the match, he was asked about his celebration with his daughter after being absent from her birthday. The 24-time Grand Slam champion narrated that she wasn’t happy that he was absent and he hopes to win the tournament as a special presentation for her:

Yeah, she was not very happy about it, me being absent from the birthday party. But I’ll try to win if I’m here. At least I’m going to try to win and give her that kind of present. I’m going to send some nice presents, as well, nice surprises for her birthday party. Hopefully the win can be something she can be happy with. But again, yeah, daddy away and daddy present is a big difference. I know that, but it is what it is this year.

The US Open is Djokovic’s first tournament since the Wimbledon Championship. He didn’t feature at the Canadian Open and Cincinnati, leading up to the New York Grand Slam event. That led him to struggle with his game in his first two matches, but after hitting 18 aces in the third round, he’s now in good form.

Novak Djokovic admits his dream is to win his 25th Grand Slam at the US Open

Novak Djokovic is in the twilight of his career on tour, but he’s still hoping to win his 25th Grand Slam title at the US Open. He has been to the quarter-finals of all four major tournaments this season, but he’s yet to reach a final. The last time he won a major was at Flushing Meadows in 2023 after beating Daniil Medvedev in the final.

Novak Djokovic (via X/The Tennis Letter)
Novak Djokovic (via X/The Tennis Letter)

During his post-match press conference, he revealed that he’s nowhere near winning the US Open despite his impressive performance in the fourth round. However, he keeps his dream of winning it alive after booking his place in the quarter-finals:

[It is] still a very long way. For me, [the] past couple of years, I learned one thing [I need to do] right now is to take really one match at a time. And yes, of course I’m dreaming about winning another Slam, and it would be amazing if I do it here.

Djokovic will take on Taylor Fritz in the last eight of the US Open. The former leads the latter 10-0 in their head-to-head record and has only dropped four sets in all their encounter. He will be hoping to extend his lead over the American star, while also taking his US Open singles win tally to 95.