“He can still win Wimbledon”: Rusedski’s big prediction for Djokovic’s future

Former Brit No. 1 Greg Rusedski offered advice to the 24-time Grand Slam champion regarding a potential retirement in the future. The 1997 US Open runner-up responded in an interview with Tennis 365, where he addressed the moment Nole should retire and backed him to remain in contention for major tournaments.

The Serbian finished the 2024 season as World No. 4, despite playing only a handful of tournaments. He ended the year with two ATP 250 titles at the Geneva Open and the Hellenic Championships and reached the semifinals at all four Grand Slams. He finished barely 300 points behind No. 3 Zverev—although the Serbian played only 13 tournaments, exactly half of the 26 tournaments the German played.

However, for Nole, the main goal is to continue fighting for more Grand Slam titles, something he has been close to achieving but has repeatedly been surpassed by the dominance of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.

With the record of 24 trophies practically unreachable, the Serbian continues his quest to extend his record even further. “Longevity is one of my biggest motivations and I really want to see how far I can go,” said Djokovic recently. “You see across all the global sports, you know, LeBron James is still going strong. Cristiano Ronaldo, Tom Brady played until he was 40. I want to keep going.”

“I also want to live, I mean keep on playing professionally, to see the change that is coming for our sport and I’m super excited about it,” the former World No. 1 added. “The things that are happening that I can’t openly speak about at the moment, but I feel like in the next couple of years, I feel like tennis is a sport that can be and will be transformed. I want to be part of that change and not just part of that change, but I want to be playing when we rejuvenate our sport and set the platform that is going to be there for decades to come.”

In any case, Djokovic is not yet thinking about retirement: “It’s not happening. I’m sorry to disappoint them. It’s just not happening,” he commented when asked at a press conference. The Serbian is targeting the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, meaning he still has quite a few seasons left in top-level competition if things go according to plan.

Djokovic is currently one of the veterans on the Tour. Within the Top 300, there are only two older players than the 38-year-old Djokovic: Stan Wawrinka (40 years old) and Gaël Monfils (39 years old), although the latter has already confirmed his retirement for the end of the 2026 season.

However, Nole—unlike the other veterans—remains one of the best players in the world, staying in the Top 5 despite only prioritizing the most important tournaments. Without the expected success (at least according to his own expectations), rumors about retirement have intensified every time he has been overshadowed by Sinner and Alcaraz in the Majors, and many have considered that the time has come for the Serbian.

Nevertheless, former Brit No. 1 Greg Rusedski believes that Djokovic still has a chance to win a major title, particularly at the upcoming Wimbledon 2026. “You know it’s time to retire when you are not enjoying it any more,” Rusedski told Tennis365. “He is still the third best player in the world, even though the rankings don’t say so.”

“Can he beat Alcaraz and Sinner in three out of five sets back to back? Possibly not. Maybe at Wimbledon, but if he is still enjoying the challenge, why not try and stay out there.

“The biggest disappointment for Novak last year was when he beat Alcaraz at the Australian Open and then he had to pull out of the semi-final against (Alexander) Zverev with an injury. If he gets into the final in a one off match against Sinner, anything can happen.

“Now, he is probably going to need a bit of luck to win a major because beating those two guys back-to-back, I don’t know. What I will never do is write off a great champion. I’ve done that in the past and it didn’t work out well for me.”