Novak Djokovic skips Cincinnati Open, withdraws from title defence in differing US Open strategy

Novak Djokovic won't play at the Cincinnati Open between August 11-19, 2024 with the defending champion halting his return seemingly until the US Open.

Djokovic won the Olympic Games gold medal last weekend and this after having knee meniscus surgery prior to Wimbledon. A tournament that he miraculously played followed by the Olympic Games shortly after.

So likely he has decided against playing in Cincinnati due to the need to rest before another US Open title tilt. But it is a slight shock given that Djokovic usually plays Cincinnati as his sole Flushing Meadows warmup.

He defeated Carlos Alcaraz in an epic tie last year in the final and while he usually skips the Montreal/Toronto starter, he usually takes part in the Flushing Meadows pre-cursor in Ohio. But while Qinwen Zheng after winning gold already has started training in Cincinnati, Djokovic is absent and their social media confirmed today that there wouldn't be any shirt rips this year.

“We certainly understand that it is a quick turnaround from his Olympic triumph to come to Cincinnati,” said Tournament Director Bob Moran. “His title run here last year was so memorable. We are eager to see him on court again soon.”

He will now be replaced by Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, who recently reached the Last 16 in Washington and impressed at Wimbledon. He shifts into the main draw. The hope will be now that Carlos Alcaraz who is absent this week in Canada decides to play with Jannik Sinner too also on the comeback trail after recent struggles with illness.

But also Djokovic's withdrawal also follows an Olympic Games trend. In both 2016 and 2021, he withdrew from the tournament post Olympic Games and in adding Shanghai later this season to his schedule has decided against two other ATP 1000 tournaments in Canada and Cincinnati.