Novak Djokovic marked his 39th birthday in Paris with a cake from the Roland Garros organizers, combining celebration with preparation for his fourth event of the year. Despite a challenging lead-up, the 24-time Grand Slam champion expressed optimism about his chances. “Not kind of how I imagined my birthday to go, but nice to see you guys,” he said. “It’s been a lot of hours spent on the court and trying to perfect the game and the body and enable myself physically and game-wise to be ready for best of five. Let’s see. I don’t know whether that’s going to be the case for the entire tournament, however long that tournament will be for me.”
Grand Slam focus
Djokovic emphasized that major tournaments remain his priority, particularly in the latter stages of his career. “Grand Slams have been, and I have said this many times, always on the priority list, particularly in the last couple of years. I always try to aim to be at the peak of my own abilities to perform well in Grand Slams, so I can’t wait to get on a court and start competing,” he commented.
Return from injury
After missing more than six weeks following Indian Wells due to injury, Djokovic returned in Rome but lost to Dino Prizmic in his opening match. He admitted he was not fully ready but needed the experience before Paris. “To be honest, it was a higher force. I wanted to play more, but my body was not allowing me,” he explained. “I was far from being ready to compete, but still, I needed at least that one match just to have the score called by the chair umpire and have experience of the nerves before I eventually come to Roland Garros. Thankfully, the response of the body and the preparation has been positive in the last 10 days, so here I am, and we’ll see what happens.”
Praise for Jannik Sinner
Djokovic also congratulated Jannik Sinner, who won the Rome Masters and completed the Career Golden Masters. “I want to congratulate him again. I have done that on social media, but again, it’s an incredible feat for him and his team,” Djokovic said. “Being one of the two guys that have managed in history to win the Golden Masters, I know how challenging that is and how difficult it is, so I really congratulate him for that, because it’s quite an achievement, and he’s really young. He has a lot of time ahead of him.”
Approach without Alcaraz
With Carlos Alcaraz absent due to injury, Djokovic was asked if his mindset had changed. He insisted his focus remained on his own fitness. “Whether that changes my approach to this tournament, I don’t think it does significantly change, to be honest, because I have been through challenging times with my body in the last six to eight months,” he said. “I feel like if I’m healthy and I’m able to maintain that level of freshness throughout the tournament… then I feel like I have always a very good chance. I have proven that in Australia this year where I was close to winning another Slam. So I always have that belief in me when I’m on the court.”
Djokovic’s birthday celebration at Roland Garros added a lighthearted moment to a serious preparation phase, as he looks to extend his legacy on the Paris clay.
Happy Birthday Novak 🧡🫶#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/LHRYJcNpd8
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 22, 2026
ATP French Open - Novak Djokovic's projected path
Novak Djokovic in 2026
Currently the world no.4, Novak played his last match on the 8th of May when he was overcome by world no.71 Dino Prizmic 2-6 6-2 6-4 in the 2nd round in Rome (draw).
During this season the Serbian has achieved a compiled 7-3 win-loss record. Novak Djokovic’s most significant achievement of the present year was getting to the final at the Australian Open.
