{"id":1095730,"date":"2026-07-17T22:54:27","date_gmt":"2026-07-17T22:54:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1095730\/"},"modified":"2026-07-17T22:54:27","modified_gmt":"2026-07-17T22:54:27","slug":"novak-djokovic-says-he-can-always-be-better-as-he-reflects-on-his-career-and-future-in-tennis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1095730\/","title":{"rendered":"Novak Djokovic says he “can always be better” as he reflects on his career and future in tennis"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tennis icon Novak Djokovic<\/a> says “there’s always something to prove” to himself and to others \u2014 even though he has a record 24 Grand Slam singles titles.<\/p>\n

“I can always be better than I was yesterday,” he told “CBS Mornings” co-host Gayle King in an interview that aired on Friday.<\/p>\n

At 39 years old, Djokovic is still “thinking about playing great tennis,” but added his body reminds him of his age.<\/p>\n

“You’re just \u2026 trying to take every percentage of extra edge that I can get to be able to still compete at an elite level with young guys,” he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Djokovic was defeated by eventual champion Jannik Sinner in the semifinals at Wimbledon earlier this month. The semifinal loss came after a draining, 5-hour-and-15-minute quarterfinal victory over Felix Auger Aliassime.<\/p>\n

“The body is responding differently and that’s just biology \u2026 the wear and tear, the 20-plus years on the highest level, it’s just taking its toll,” Djokovic said, reflecting on the tournament. “I just couldn’t fully recover for the semis and I wasn’t as fresh as I wanted to be. But not to take anything away from Sinner who won \u2026 the tournament, but it’s just, it’s different nowadays.”<\/p>\n

Now, his focus is set on the U.S. Open in New York City next month.<\/p>\n

Djokovic’s biggest competition?<\/p>\n

“Myself, always,” he said.<\/p>\n

“It’s the most, I think, entertaining, most exciting Grand Slam. \u2026 One of the biggest things of why I still compete is the energy of the crowd and the appreciation and respect that I’ve been getting, particularly in the last several years, around the world is something I \u2026 cannot thank people enough.”<\/p>\n

Family support<\/p>\n

Despite holding the all-time record for the most weeks \u2014 428 \u2014 spent as No. 1 in men’s singles, tennis was not a natural fit for the Serbian player.<\/p>\n

“I do come from a family of professional skiers,” Djokovic said.<\/p>\n

He was 4 years old when he started playing tennis and said no one had “touched the racket in my family, extended family, ever before.”<\/p>\n

“We don’t have a tennis tradition in Serbia. We didn’t have it to that point. And then I was interested,” he said. “I fell in love. I asked my dad to buy me a racket and that’s how the whole love story with tennis started.”<\/p>\n

For the tennis legend, the sport was his safe space.<\/p>\n

“I would connect it to my childhood, my upbringing, war-torn country, several wars during [the] ’90s, embargo, sanctions, economical crisis, social crisis, you know, crisis of every kind. I chose [the] most expensive sport and my parents wanted to support me,” he said.<\/p>\n

He also credits his wife and children for their support in helping him continue to live his dream.<\/p>\n

“I leave them, the absence, missing out on some important dates and events in their life \u2026 it’s hard,” Djokovic said. “But I also want to balance it out now. That’s why I don’t play as much as I used to, because I want to be the best husband, father, brother, son that I could possibly be.”<\/p>\n

“It’s already epic”<\/p>\n

Last month,\u00a0Serena Williams<\/a> returned to the court after the 44-year-old stepped away from professional tennis for nearly four years.<\/p>\n

“Let’s enjoy and celebrate who she is, what she has achieved,” Djokovic told “CBS Mornings.”<\/p>\n

At Wimbledon, Williams<\/a> lost her opening singles match and had to withdraw from the doubles match she was scheduled to play with her sister, Venus, due to a knee injury.<\/p>\n

“It doesn’t matter if she wins or loses, it’s already epic,” Djokovic said. “It’s what I told her personally in Wimbledon and it’s what I truly honestly feel in my heart. So I want her to feel happy and joyful on the court because in a sense, to some extent, I know how it feels, still trying to push at that age when you have achieved everything that you possibly can.”<\/p>\n

Next month, a new documentary called “Novak Djokovic: The Wolf in Winter” will give a behind-the-scenes look at the tennis star’s life and career.<\/p>\n

\n More from CBS News\n <\/p>\n

\n Go deeper with The Free Press\n <\/p>\n

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