Novak Djokovic Reveals If He Still Has ‘Desire’ to Play 2028 Los Angeles Olympics

Novak Djokovic has once again proved that he can beat age by reaching the final of the recently concluded Australian Open. En route to his four-set defeat at the hands of Carlos Alcaraz, Djokovic shocked the tennis world by downing two-time defending champion Jannik Sinner in five sets.

Although he was unsuccessful in ending the event in his favor, Djokovic has shown that he still can compete at the highest level, notwithstanding the fact that he is 38 years old. Beating Sinner was an achievement in itself for Nole, thanks to the Italian’s nearly invincible status since the 2024 season.

After his defeat to Alcaraz, Djokovic dropped retirement hints twice. The 24-time Grand Slam champion expressed a deep gratitude to the Aussie fans during the runner-up speech, saying anything can happen in the future, and at the press conference, he said he was unsure whether he would be returning to Melbourne next year as a player.

Djokovic, after winning his career’s first Olympic gold medal in Paris back in 2024, said on several occasions that he wishes to play the 2028 Los Angeles. And after winning his second title of the 2025 season in the first edition of the Hellenic Championship, Djokovic said he wants to hang up his racket after playing the Olympics in Los Angeles.

The Winter Olympics kicked off in Italy on February 6. Djokovic, in an interview, said he still has the desire to play the 2028 Olympics, but Nole, who will turn 39 in May, is also realistic.

Far away, yes. At this stage of my life and career, it’s far off, but obviously, I have the desire to get there.

Novak Djokovic said

The 2024 Paris Olympics gold medal is the last Big Title Djokovic has won. Since then, he couldn’t capitalize on the handful of chances he got to add a few more of these titles to his trophy cabinet.

Riccardo Piatti warns Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz to be careful of Novak Djokovic

Fitness coach Riccardo Piatti, who has worked with both Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic, thinks that the reason why the latter reached another Major final was because of his preparation during the off-season. Piatti thinks that winning at Roland Garros can be tough for Djokovic, but one should not write him off at Wimbledon, where he has won seven titles.

He hired my friend Dalibor Sirola, a fitness coach, and started preparing for the Australian Open on December 1 of last year. He knows that at this age, he needs even more preparation simply because he is older. In fact, players of different ages have less time than he does because they do not have the same schedule.

Riccardo Piatti told L’Equipe

Piatti also warned Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz to be more “careful” of Djoker after his Australian Open run. The last time Djokovic won a Major was at the 2023 US Open, and since then, he has reached two Grand Slam finals: at Wimbledon in 2024 and this year’s Australian Open.

In the final, we saw again that Novak’s only issue was his age and, therefore, his physical condition. I respect his efforts to prepare again for these Major events, and I respect him even more after this tournament. He loves this sport and wants to be very competitive. I am surprised he lost, but it is simply because Alcaraz was the better player.

Riccardo Piatti added

Last year at Wimbledon, eventual champion Sinner knocked him out in the semifinals. Djokovic made the semifinals of every Major in the 2025 season. He reached three tour-level finals, losing the Miami Open and winning two ATP 250 titles in Geneva and Athens.

Also read: Former World No.1 Believes Alexander Zverev Missed an “Opportunity” at the 2026 Australian Open

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