Novak Djokovic withdraws from Cincinnati Open; set to play US Open with no warm-up tournaments

Novak Djokovic has decided to opt out of the upcoming Cincinnati Open. The Serbian had recently also withdrawn from the Toronto Open. The veteran last played at the Wimbledon and he is now all set to play the US Open without any warm-up tournaments.

The New York Major will commence on 24th August. In the previous season, Djokovic was stunned by Alexei Popyrin in the third round at the Flushing Meadows.

Djokovic is chasing his record-breaking 25th Grand Slam title and his last Slam victory came at the 2023 U.S. Open. Since then, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have shared the last seven Major titles among them.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion recently suffered a straight set loss against Jannik Sinner in the Wimbledon semifinal. 

“Honestly, wasn’t really a pleasant feeling on the court,” Djokovic said, during the post-match press conference after his loss against the Italian.“I don’t want to talk, in details, about my injury and just whine about not managing to play my best. I want to congratulate Jannik for another great performance. That’s it. He’s in the finals. He was too strong.”

“I do feel, yeah, disappointed that I just wasn’t able to move as well as I thought or hoped that I would. I don’t think it’s bad fortune. It’s just age, the wear and tear of the body. As much as I’m taking care of it, the reality hits me right now, last year and a half, like never before, to be honest,” he added.

While Djokovic had to pull out of the Australian Open semifinal against Alexander Zverev due to hamstring injury, he was once again beaten by Jannik Sinner in the French Open semis.