Novak Djokovic’s preparation for the Australian Open has been far from ideal.
After all, having ended his 2025 season in November, the Serbian was poised to make his return to action in Adelaide earlier this month.
This marked a real outlier for a player who has routinely opted against playing any preparatory tournaments over the last few years for the bigger events.
However, in a frustrating turn of events, Novak Djokovic was forced to pull out, citing an issue with his neck that has followed him to Melbourne.
How far do you think Novak Djokovic will go at the Australian Open?
And yet, despite all this, John McEnroe would point out another decision that the 39-year-old made ahead of the Australian Open that truly stumped him.
John McEnroe questions why Novak Djokovic left the PTPA
Speaking about Djokovic’s decision to leave the PTPA, the organisation that he founded in order to progress the sport of tennis and benefit the players, McEnroe admitted: “It came practically out of nowhere.”
However, he then questioned the entire operation, adding: “I’m not even sure if it’s a union or an association — and the difference between the two terms is huge and leads to a whole other political debate about the actual impact.
“I don’t know exactly which players are involved, or whether it is possible to be a member of ATP and PTPA at the same time. All this additionally shows that the players are not at the table in the way they should be, because they are too divided.
“This is another example of how the whole situation seems to have caught Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer off guard. I don’t know what will happen next.
“I remember talking to Novak about all this before, as well as to the PTPA president at the time, but I haven’t heard anything since then. That was a few years ago.”
He concluded by expressing the need for a functioning PTPA-like establishment, claiming: “However, in my opinion, the players have never been treated fairly, which is why the ATP was founded in the first place.”
Novak Djokovic’s downbeat Australian Open press conference
All in all, the last month has not been easy for Djokovic.
And, that frustration was sadly expressed in his press conference just yesterday, where he seemed resigned to the fact that it would be another gruelling task to try and win his 25th Grand Slam title.
When asked what he needed to do to beat the world’s best, Djokovic stated what he was missing to be able to compete with Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, taking the question and immediately framing it in a more negative way.
The Australian Open is the best Grand Slam… discuss!
It feels like, after over a year of genuinely believing he could mix it with these young superstars, he’s now accepted that they are out of his reach.
This is not what we have become accustomed to seeing from the super-confident superstar who is likely not used to being so far from the top.
Receive exclusive tennis news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
