By HOWARD FENDRICH AP Tennis Writer
Novak Djokovic withdrew from the Australian Open tuneup tournament in Adelaide, saying Monday that he isn’t prepared to return to competition ahead of the year’s first Grand Slam event.
“To all my fans in Adelaide, unfortunately I’m not quite physically ready to compete in the Adelaide International next week,” Djokovic posted on social media. “It’s personally very disappointing to me, as I have such great memories of winning the title there two years ago. I was really excited about returning as it truly felt like playing at home.”
Djokovic, a 38-year-old with a men’s-record 24 major singles championships, has not played an official match in nearly two full months. He defeated Lorenzo Musetti in the final of the Hellenic Championship in Athens on Nov. 8, then announced he would be pulling out of the ATP Finals for the second year in a row, citing a shoulder injury.
“My focus is now on my preparation for the Australian Open,” Djokovic wrote Monday, “and I look forward to arriving in Melbourne soon and seeing all the tennis fans in Australia.”
Main-draw play at Melbourne Park begins on Jan. 18.
Djokovic has won the hard-court major that opens the Grand Slam season a record 10 times in all, including most recently in 2023.
He exited in the semifinals each of the past two years, including being forced to stop playing after one set against Alexander Zverev in that round in 2025 because of a torn hamstring muscle.
Djokovic reached the semifinals at all four majors last season.
He begins this season ranked No. 4, trailing only Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner and Zverev.
The Adelaide withdrawal comes a day after Djokovic announced he would be cutting ties with the Professional Tennis Players Association, a group he co-founded that sued the sport’s governing bodies last year in a bid to gain more money and influence for the sport’s athletes.
___
Howard Fendrich has been the AP’s tennis writer since 2002. Find his stories here: https://apnews.com/author/howard-fendrich. More AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis