"Hope to see you next year": Novak Djokovic confirms Paris Masters withdrawal

It has been confirmed that Novak Djokovic will not participate in the Paris Masters, where he was contemplated as the 5th seed. The 24-time Grand Slam champion informed the organization this Tuesday that he will not be part of the event, marking his second consecutive year skipping the last Masters 1000 tournament of the year.

The Serbian was at the Six Kings Slam last week, where he ended up retiring in the third-place match against Taylor Fritz due to physical complications. After the tournament, Djokovic had cast doubts on how his calendar would continue, leaving open the possibility of withdrawing from the Paris Masters.

Currently, Djokovic's intentions are to play the ATP 250 Athens tournament, which will take place between October 27 and November 2, in his new city of residence. The tournament, which is owned by his family, will debut in Greece—after its relocation from Belgrade. "I’m planning to play the Athens tournament. That’s for sure. But other than that, it’s really still a question mark," he commented after the US Open.

It was announced this Tuesday that the 38-year-old star will not participate in the Paris Masters, where he holds 7 titles (2009, '13, '14, '15, '19, '21, '23) and reached the final two other times. He is the player with the most victories in the tournament's history, with a 50-9 record (85%). His spot in Paris will be taken by the Frenchman Benjamin Bonzi, who was listed as a reserve.

“Dear Paris, unfortunately I’ll not compete at this year’s @RolexPMasters,” Djokovic posted on his social media. “I have amazing memories and great success over the years, especially being able to conquer the title 7 times. Hope to see you next year. Merci 🙏🏼”

The former World No. 1 recently secured his qualification for the ATP Finals in Turin—for the 18th time in his career, tying Roger Federer's record—although it remains to be seen if he will take part in that tournament, scheduled from the 9th to the 16th of the same month.

With this, Djokovic has played only five Masters 1000 tournaments this season, with his best result being the Miami Open—where he reached the final but fell to young star Jakub Mensik. The World No. 5 also suffered defeats in his debuts at the Indian Wells, Monte-Carlo Masters, and Madrid Open.

In recent months, he concentrated his appearances on the Grand Slams, playing the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open—and reaching the semifinals in each of them. However, he had not played an ATP category tournament in the last six months until his recent appearance at the Shanghai Masters, where he again reached the semifinals but ended up falling to eventual champion Valentin Vacherot in straight sets, in a performance where the Serbian appeared physically compromised.

His last appearance this year was at the Six Kings Slam exhibition tournament last week, where he earned $1.5 million for his participation. The Serbian debuted in the semi-finals, losing to the Italian Jannik Sinner in straight sets, and then faced the third-place match against Taylor Fritz—in which he retired after conceding the first set in the tie-break.