Today's Edition
London (PA Media/dpa)
Novak Djokovic feels Wimbledon could be his best chance of adding a record 25th Grand Slam to his exceptional CV as he prepares for his 20th experience of the tournament.
The Serbian, who has lifted the men's singles trophy seven times, exited the French Open at the semi-final stage after losing to a far younger player in Jannik Sinner.
At 38 Djokovic is bidding to become the oldest winner of a major title, and with his prior Wimbledon form he considers the upcoming championship a prime opportunity to do so.
"My wish is to play for several more years, I would love to be healthy physically and also mentally motivated to keep on playing at the highest level," he said.
"That's the goal, but you never know at this stage.
"I would probably agree that Wimbledon could be the best chance (of a 25th Grand Slam) because of the results I have had, because of how I feel, how I play in Wimbledon - just getting that extra push mentally and motivation to perform the best tennis at the highest level.
"Whether it could be my last dance, I'm not sure, as I'm not sure about Roland Garros or any other slam that I play next."
In the latter stages of his career Djokovic has focused less on his ranking and more on his performances in Grand Slams, an approach that has allowed him to be philosophical about losses in lesser events.
He said: "I would say it's slightly different for me now in terms of I don't chase the rankings anymore in that regard. I'm trying to play the best tennis in Grand Slams and trying to win Grand Slams. That hasn't changed.
"Even though my level of tennis has been going quite up and down and fluctuating much more than it was the case for the most part of my career - if you see the last year and a half I've been kind of volatile with my results. Grand Slams stays quite consistent.
"Except the US Open last year, was playing quarters or semi-finals. That's good. That's a good sign because that's exactly what I want. These tournaments give me the biggest drive still.
"This year I played two semi-finals. Unfortunately in Australia I had to retire, in Roland Garros I was outplayed by Sinner. I think I still played a decent level of tennis that showed me that I can still play on a very high level at the later stages."
