Novak Djokovic's press conference ahead of the 2026 Australian Open has raised concerns.
On Sunday, the Australian Open began in Melbourne, with the likes of Carlos Alcaraz, Aryna Sabalenka, Alexander Zverev and Emma Raducanu all winning their opening round matches.
From Monday, other favourites such as Djokovic, Jannik Sinner, Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek will begin their quests for the title.
Djokovic, 38, is looking to win a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam title; he is currently tied with Margaret Court on 24 in the all-time list.
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However, speaking ahead of his opening match against Pedro Martinez, Djokovic's body language raised concerns.
The Tennis Podcast host, Catherine Whitaker, was left worried by the way Djokovic looked and sounded.
As per Tennis Head, she said: "I was quite shocked by how tired and well… weary and resigned he seemed and sounded."
David Law then added: "Yeah, I was a bit as well.
"I mean, I suppose he was introduced into the room by the moderator as playing in his 21st Australian Open. I suppose when you’ve been through this whole process and you’ve won the thing, what is it, ten times and you’ve been in all these pre-tournament press conferences? It probably does get a bit wearying and boring, and you might struggle to show much enthusiasm."
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He continued: "Not that he wasn’t polite when he walked in, and he gave all the questions his due care and attention, but there was just a bit of a lack of fizz about it. There wasn’t much energy. He didn’t look that up for it all, and to be honest, and that’s fine."
Novak Djokovic makes honest admission ahead of Australian Open
In recent days, Djokovic admitted that he doesn't have enough energy in his legs to match the likes of Sinner and Alcaraz in the latter stages of a Grand Slam.
The Serbian great said: "I’m missing a little bit of juice in my legs, to be honest, to be able to compete with these guys at the later stages of a Grand Slam.
"But I’m definitely giving my best, as I have in 2025."
Topics: Tennis, Australian Open, Novak Djokovic
Marcus Chan