Novak Djokovic has not won any titles in 2026, his 25th Grand Slam is still avoiding him, but at the age of 39, experts assess that he has had a relatively successful season.
On the past journey, Djokovic reached the Australian Open final in the first tournament of 2026, notably the dramatic 5-set victory over Jannik Sinner.
The Serbian player struggled in the remainder of the hardcourt series and the early stages of the clay court season, before stopping in the 3rd round of Roland Garros due to losing to Joao Fonseca.
However, Djokovic played much better at Wimbledon when he reached the semi-finals. Here, he let Sinner avenge his debt in Melbourne.
Djokovic continues to select tournaments very carefully in 2026, but he still achieves impressive results of 14 wins, 5 losses from the beginning of the season. However, his biggest problem is very clearly shown through these defeats.
Novak Djokovic's losses in 2026
Carlos Alcaraz – Australian Open
Jack Draper – Indian Wells
Dino Prizmic – Italian Open
Joao Fonseca – Roland Garros
Jannik Sinner – Wimbledon
4 out of 5 defeats of Djokovic this season took place after he won the first set. The player with 24 Grand Slam titles could not maintain his usual dominance once he took the lead.
This is very unusual for Djokovic - who is considered one of the players who has taken advantage of the lead best in tennis history.
Before the 2026 season, Djokovic had a streak of 82 consecutive wins after winning set 1. Therefore, this is a completely new problem that he needs to find a solution to.
This issue is particularly dangerous because it makes Djokovic always fall into prolonged physical matches, especially in the Grand Slam arena.
At Roland Garros, he lost to Fonseca after 5 sets despite leading by 2 sets.
In the Australian Open final, he also won the first set against Alcaraz before losing back.
Clearly, to conquer another Grand Slam title, Djokovic needs to quickly close the match. Restoring the bravery of a "leader" will be the key to increasing his championship chances.
Towards US Open and Cincinnati Open
Djokovic will continue his efforts to seek his 25th Grand Slam title at the US Open at the end of August. Previously, he confirmed that he would participate in the Cincinnati Open warm-up tournament for the first time in 3 years (starting from August 11).
In his career, Djokovic has won 3 times in Cincinnati in 2018, 2020 and 2023.
