"It's great to be part of this new generation," when Djokovic joked about his age after his victory against Sinner in the Wimbledon 2023 semifinals

Adrien Guyot

le 24/09/2025 à 11h22

2 min to read

Alcaraz Djokovic Sinner Wimbledon

Novak Djokovic, a tennis legend, remains ranked in the world's top ten at the age of 38. This is an exceptional longevity for the Serbian player, who has experienced different eras of tennis.

That of the Big 3, of course, which he dominated unchallenged alongside his two great rivals Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, as well as that of the generation of future tennis legends, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.

At the 2023 Wimbledon tournament, Djokovic, who was the four-time defending champion at the start of the event, managed to reach the semifinals after victories against Cachin, Thompson, Hurkacz, Wawrinka, and Rublev.

In the semifinals, the number 8 seed, a certain Jannik Sinner, stood in Djokovic's path. The two had faced off in the quarterfinals of the previous edition, and the Serbian, after being down two sets to love, had emerged victorious.

A year later, Djokovic, then 36 years old, did not repeat the same mistake and won in three sets (6-3, 6-4, 7-6 in 2 hours and 48 minutes). After his victory against Sinner, who was 21 at the time (his third win in as many encounters back then), Djokovic, in an on-court interview, discussed his longevity, even joking about his age.

"It was a very tight match; the third set could have gone his way. He missed a few shots that allowed me to get to the tie-break. The third set was very tense. Jannik (Sinner) showed why he is one of the leaders of the new generation and undoubtedly one of the best players we have in this sport. It's great to be part of this new generation; I love it.

I'd like to think I'm playing some of the best tennis of my career. I try not to focus on age or other factors that could influence the outcome. It seems like 36 is the new 26. I feel good.

I'm very motivated to keep playing this sport that I love so much. Tennis has given me so much in my life, and to my family as well. I try to be honest and give back to tennis as often as possible."

Two days after his success against Sinner, Djokovic lost in a magnificent final against Carlos Alcaraz (6-1, 6-7, 6-1, 3-6, 6-4 in 4 hours and 42 minutes), who thus claimed his first Wimbledon title.

Before that, the Serbian had only lost one final at Wimbledon, in 2013 against Andy Murray. The Spaniard also became the first player outside the "Big 4" to win the grass-court Grand Slam since Lleyton Hewitt in 2002, before repeating this feat the following year against the same Djokovic, in a final less memorable than the previous one.