Novak Djokovic will start his 2025 tennis season at the ATP 250 tournament in Brisbane, which begins 29 December. Andy Murray, who Djokovic hired as his new coach for the Australian Open, is not currently planning on being there, a member of his team confirmed to The Athletic.
Djokovic, who last year admitted to struggling with motivation for tournaments outside of Grand Slams and the Olympics — where he finally won gold in August — has taken a different view ahead of 2025.
“I will play more tournaments,” he said in an interview with Gazzetto dello Sport, adding that he is refreshed and ready to challenge Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, who he views as the two best players in the world, for Grand Slam titles in the coming season.
Djokovic said he was “done” with paying attention to his ATP Tour ranking at a Davis Cup news conference in September, but it will be key to his chances of meeting Alcaraz and Sinner in semifinals and finals rather than earlier in the Grand Slams he wants the most.
Djokovic, who at 37 has 24 major titles, remains in search of the 25th which would take him past Margaret Court’s record tally. Ranked No. 7, he could face world No. 1 Sinner at the quarterfinal stage of the Australian Open, which begins January 12.
He won the Adelaide International last year, another 250-level tournament held the week before the Australian Open, before losing to eventual champion Sinner at the semifinal stage in Melbourne. It was his first-ever defeat in a semifinal or final at the tournament, which he has won 10 times, more than any other major.
