What Does 2024 Have in Store for Novak Djokovic?

World #1, Serbia's Novak Djokovic, has just entered his 411th week in the top position in the ATP men's singles rankings. With 24 grand slams, Djokovic has won more tennis "majors" in singles than any other male player, with his nearest challenger, Spain's Rafa Nadal, injury-prone and two shy of his total.

What more can we expect from the most successful men's tennis player in history as we move towards the French Open, 2024's second grand slam, at Roland-Garros in Paris in May?

2024's Australian Open in Melbourne was Djokovic's chance to claim the overall record as the tennis player with the most grand slam singles titles, a record he holds with the controversial Australian women's player Margaret Court.

As the bookmakers' favourite according to featured betting sites, "Nole" was expected to reach the final but failed, beaten by the ever-improving Italian player Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals. Sinner went on to defeat Daniil Medvedev in the final for his first grand slam singles title, with his victory over Djokovic meaning the Serbian remains one Australian Open title shy of Court's record of 11.

After Djokovic's surprise Australian Open semi-final exit, the world's best male player has chosen not to enter the 2024 ATP Dubai Championships in February, an event he's won five times in the past. Instead, his next ATP appearance looks to be coming at the Indian Wells Masters, beginning on March 6.

At the time of writing, 36-year-old Novak Djokovic had extended his total number of weeks on top of the ATP men's singles ranking to over 100 more than any other men's player, with Swiss great Roger Federer (310) being his closest competitor, 101 weeks behind him. His nearest active rival is Rafa Nadal, with 209 weeks at the summit.

According to the sportsbooks featured on Safe Betting Sites, by the time Djokovic takes to the court in Indian Wells, he will likely have extended his lead, as his nearest rival in the ATP world men's singles rankings, the 20-year-old Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz, is 600 ranking points behind the Serbian great.

With the Australian Open runner-up Medvedev and winner Sinner a further 490 and 945 points behind in the world rankings, the current world #1 looks set to maintain the top spot until the ATP tour reaches Mami for the Miami Open starting on March 20.

At this point, Djokovic has set no definitive schedule for his ATP tournament participation in 2024. After his shock semi-final exit in Melbourne, the enduring world #1 explained his reasons for this, and his priorities this season:

“Let’s see how things will unfold in the future. I want my thoughts to settle - when I calm down, I will move on and see what tournaments I will play.

I made a commitment to myself that I [would] give it my all this year, with the priority being [the] Slams and the Olympics. We’ll see whether something will change in this stage of my life and my career, some surprising decisions are maybe more expected compared to twenty years ago.”

With these words in mind, there is no doubt that Novak Djokovic will be at Roland-Garros aiming for a fourth French Open crown and in Paris again for the 2024 Summer Olympics, looking to claim the gold medal that is the one accolade in tennis that still eludes him.