Adriano Panatta: A Blunt Prediction About Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic

Speaking on “Domenica Sportiva,” Adriano Panatta discussed Novak Djokovic and the possibility of him retiring from the tour after more than twenty years at the highest level. “It’s his problem; he has to decide for himself. He’s still making it to the semifinals at Grand Slams; I quit when I started losing consistently in the second or third round.”

According to the former Italian tennis player, Jannik Sinner himself could be the one to bring Djokovic’s career to an end: “McEnroe forced Borg to retire, and Becker forced McEnroe to retire. I said two or three years ago that Sinner would force Djokovic to retire, but he still hasn’t.”

The Belgrade champion suffered a crushing defeat against Navone in the first round of the U.S. Open: he hadn’t lost in the first round of a Grand Slam in over twenty years, and the end of an era truly seems near. The former world No. 1 was eliminated in the first round after a battle that lasted 4 hours and 36 minutes and ended with a score of 7-6(5), 5-7, 4-6, 6-2, 6

The 39-year-old Serb, speaking in the mixed zone at Arthur Ashe Stadium, made no secret of his ordeal: “I think it was obvious that I felt terrible out on the court. It’s something that, unfortunately, I’ve been dealing with in practically every match this year. Vomiting, retching—it’s a real problem in that regard. Then my whole body starts to give out, with cramps and pain everywhere. In the end, my back gave out, as did my shoulder, and I wasn’t able to finish the match.”  Djokovic also added: “Obviously, I’m very proud of everything I’ve achieved in the past, but today is today. Right now, I’m just trying to figure out what’s really going on and how far I can go under these conditions.”