Novak Djokovic is plummeting down the ATP rankings. With injuries taking a toll on his season and form not by his side, the Serbian has seen a massive shift in priorities. While he won three major tournaments last season, Djokovic has yet to open his account this year. But luckily, 2024 falls on the Olympic calendar and Djokovic is more than ready to go all out to clinch the top honor. Recently, former tennis player Greg Rusedski highlighted this fact while explaining why the Serb will prioritize the Olympics over the Grand Slams.

There have been reports in the media that Novak Djokovic is set to skip the upcoming Wimbledon Championships to be fully fit for the Olympic Games. He suffered a knee injury at the French Open and withdrew before his quarterfinal match against Casper Ruud, causing him to lose his World No. 1 ranking to Jannik Sinner. Rusedski further fueled the rumors about Djokovic missing Wimbledon with a candid confession.

The 50-year-old appeared on the recent episode of Tennis Channel Inside-In podcast where he spoke at lengths about Djokovic’s eagerness to participate in the Olympics. The former British No. 1 said, “The Olympics is going to be tough, no question about that. But that’s where the medical would have to do their magic. The Australian Open, he won with a stomach tear, how did he do that? I mean, just superhuman.”

At the 2021 Grand Slam in Melbourne, Djokovic had sustained a crack in the oblique abdominal muscles in the third-round match against Taylor Fritz. The tear increased from 17 millimeters at the beginning to 25 millimeters, per the Australian media. But the Serbinator persevered and eventually emerged as the champion. But 2024 is not quite the same.

Rusdeski added, “And I know the drive for this year, if you say to Novak another major or three majors or the Olympic gold, what is more important? The Olympic gold is by far the number 1. If he has a shot and if he says to his team, his doctors that we can manage it, you’ll be at 85-90%, I think he is gonna risk it.”

While Novak Djokovic may have achieved almost everything in his illustrious tennis career, there is one big feat that he has yet to achieve. It is related to the Olympic Games and it is one of the reasons for Djokovic prioritizing the Olympics over the Grand Slams.

Novak Djokovic looking to find the missing piece in his trophy cabinet

While the Serb has won a record 24 major titles, he still hasn’t been able to win a gold medal at the Olympic Games. His best performance on the sporting world’s biggest stage came in 2008 when he won a bronze medal in Beijing. As a result, he is extra motivated to make it big this year in Paris.

Speaking about his aspirations, Djokovic said, “Yes, somehow it’s been coming in cycles for 10 years, that gold medal for Serbia is missing. I dream about it, the reason I didn’t get to it is maybe that I was stressing too much about it. That doesn’t mean it won’t happen in the future.”

The Serb has underwent surgery to repair a tear in his right knee. It remains to be seen how soon he can return back to the court to be prepared for the Paris Olympics.