‘He’ll Run Out of Energy’- Andre Agassi Drops Truth Bombs on Novak Djokovic’s Career Ending Phase With His Own Example

Roger Federer pulled the curtains down on his career after the Laver Cup in 2022. Rafael Nadal bid goodbye to tennis this year after Spain’s tie against the Netherlands in the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga. So, Novak Djokovic is the lone man standing among the ‘Big 3’. The Serb struggled for the most part of the 2024 season, barring his gold medal in the Paris Olympics. He finished the season without a Grand Slam title for the first time since 2017 and without multiple titles for the first time since 2005. So, he’ll be keen to bounce back on winning tracks in 2025, but how difficult will it be for him to rediscover his inspiration and carry forward the legacy of the ‘Big 3’? Andre Agassi has something to say about that. 

American tennis legend, Andre Agassi who coached Novak Djokovic between 2017 and 2018, recently shared some interesting comments on the same during a conversation at the TiE Global Summit 2024. He highlighted the absence of Federer and Nadal and said, “I think he’ll (Djokovic) run out of energy more than capability, especially when the people you came to the dance with have left.” Agassi further brought in a comparison with his own career.

He added, “When Pete [Sampras] retired, I had to rediscover my inspiration. Djokovic has lost the guys he made history with. Emotionally it’s tougher. But I would never bet against him.” Just on this note, we know Andre Agassi was also part of a golden generation of American singles players in the 1990s and he also won multiple Grand Slam titles. However, he last won a Grand Slam (AO) title in 2003 and that was the same year when Andy Roddick won the US Open. After that, none of the American men’s players had success in the singles event of the Grand Slam tournaments. Agassi took retirement from the sport with 8 Grand Slam titles in 2006!

However, this isn’t the first time this year that we’ve seen Agassi speak on Novak Djokovic. In January, the 54-year-old American shared his thoughts on the Serb during a conversation with Eurosport’s Barbara Schett. He said, “It’s always a pleasure to watch him at his craft. Only he can do it the way he does it and it’s a pleasure for all of us to see it happening. Hopefully, he’ll stick around for a while.” Not only that, during that same conversation he added, “He (Nole) keeps rewriting all the records, even his own. Here he is, 36, and it looks to me like he’s going on 31. He’ll have a few more years as well.“

How does Novak Djokovic look at his relationship with Andre Agassi? Well, during a previous interview, the Serb said, “He’s someone that I always admired as a player and a person…The amount of things that I learned, not just about tennis but about life in general, and for that I’m very grateful.” Talking about their partnership, he added, “I felt only friendship I felt only sincere willingness and desire to help me out and that’s all.” 

With the 2025 season knocking at the doors, we’re seeing several experts sharing their thoughts on Novak Djokovic‘s chances in the next few months. However, what does the Serb think about his possibility of jumping back to winning tracks in the next season?

“I still feel I can play at the highest level” – Novak Djokovic

The form is temporary, but the class is permanent! Novak Djokovic will kick-start his 2025 season in Brisbane. He’ll compete at the ATP 250 event for the first time since 2009. But the question is: Can he win his 25th Grand Slam title in Melbourne?

Well, we’ll have to wait for a few more weeks to get this answer! However, one thing is for sure at the moment, Djokovic has no intentions of slowing down further in the next 12 months. During an interview with Sport Klub, Novak Djokovic said, “Tennis is still my focus. I am going at full throttle in the off-season, we go for another ride. I just needed to recharge and refresh a bit after an exhausting year.” His main goal for 2025 seems to be extending his Grand Slam success and helping him in the ‘Melbourne Slam’, he has recently also brought in Andy Murray in his team.

Can he bring up a strong challenge against the new superstars like Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner? Well, in reply to this, he admitted that they’ll be the main contenders for the Grand Slam and other titles but he believes he’s physically and mentally prepared to get his show running on the courts. “I have the feeling that I can challenge these guys and that my experience can be useful. Next year, I’ll be playing more tournaments, and the Grand Slams will be my priority.“

He’s already 37 years old and has won a total of 99 singles titles in his career! However, his hunger for success is still the same. We don’t know how long will we see him in action though, but truly he has managed to put up some serious benchmarks for the next-gen. Talking about predicting his retirement plans, the former Russian tennis player, Nikolay Davydenko made an interesting comment recently. He said, “Perhaps he wants to surpass Federer and Nadal’s record of longest career. Roger ended at 41. Maybe Novak aims to reach that age. Maybe he will play fewer tournaments.” Do you think Djokovic can win his 25th Grand Slam title in Melbourne?