Novak Djokovic may be the next illustrious casualty for this upcoming Olympics. The Serbian legend is notoriously extremely keen on defending his country’s colors in all sorts of competitions.
A few weeks ago, Djokovic was more than keen to play the upcoming Olympic Games. However, there will be new tough restrictions at the upcoming games in Tokyo and therefore, Djokovic is not so sure anymore that he will participate in the competition. Novak won all sorts of trophies, but he misses the Olympic gold medal, so it would be particularly painful for him not to play.
Rafael Nadal, Denis Shapovalov, and Jannik Sinner are the latest top players who have already declared that they will not play in the Olympics.
Why Djokovic may not play the Olympics
During the press conference that followed his Wimbledon final, Novak commented:
“My plan was always to go to Olympic Games, but right now I’m a little bit divided. It’s kind of 50-50 because of what I heard in the last couple days.
I also hear that there’s going to be a lot of restrictions within the Village. Possibly you would not be able to see other athletes perform live. I can’t even have my stringer that is a very important part of my team. I’m limited with the amount of people I can take in my team as well.”
Novak Djokovic in 2021
Ranked world no.1, Djokovic played his last match on the 11th of July when he defeated world no.9 Matteo Berrettini 6-7(4) 6-4 6-4 6-3 in the final of Wimbledon to win his 85th career title.
Currently, during this year the Serbian has managed to achieve a 34-3 win-loss record. The Serbian clinched 4 titles in 2021 at the Australian Open, in Belgrade, at the French Open and in Wimbledon. The Serbian reached the final in Rome.
Rafael Nadal in 2021
At the moment ranked no.3, Nadal played his last match on the 11th of June when he surrendered to world no.1 Novak Djokovic 3-6 6-3 7-6(4) 6-2 in the semifinal of the French Open (draw).
Presently, during this year Rafael has managed to achieve a 23-4 record. Rafael clinched 2 titles in 2021 in Barcelona and in Rome.
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal fought against each other 58 times. Their head to head is 30-28 for Djokovic. Previously, the last time when they squared off, Novak Djokovic won 3-6 6-3 7-6(4) 6-2 in the semifinal in Paris (French Open) on the 11th of June 2021.
In the following video you can watch the key moments of their match.
Denis Shapovalov in 2021
Currently ranked no.12, Shapovalov played his last match on the 9th of July when he lost to world no.1 Novak Djokovic 7-6(3) 7-5 7-5 in the semifinal of the Wimbledon (draw).
Currently, during this year the Canadian has a 22-14 record. Denis Shapovalov’s best result of the current season was reaching the final in Geneva.
Jannik Sinner in 2021
Currently ranked no.23, Jannik played his last match on the 28th of June when he was overcome by world no.48 Marton Fucsovics 5-7 6-3 7-5 6-3 in the 1st round of the Wimbledon (draw).
At present, during this year the Italian has a 24-13 record. This year, Jannik lifted the trophy in Melbourne. The Italian was the finalist in Miami.
Denis Shapovalov and Jannik Sinner played each other once. The head to head is 1-0 for Shapovalov. When they played, Denis Shapovalov won 3-6 6-3 6-2 4-6 6-4 in the 1st round in Melbourne (Australian Open) on the 8th of February 2021.
In the video below you can watch the highlights.
