Novak Djokovic might not be the youngest anymore, but he definitely doesn't feel 'too old' as he explained at the 2024 Shanghai Masters.
The Serbian legend turned 37 in May of this year. That's the age that only a couple of decades ago seemed like impossible to play in, especially at the highest level.
Yet, only a few years later, also thanks to their greatness, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic proved that it's possible to compete at the highest level also well into their 30s.
Apart from Ken Rosewall, who won three majors after turning 35 in 1970s, they are the only three male players that managed to win Grand Slam titles after turning 35.
They pushed the boundaries of what seemed possible, but also they are only humans. Federer is already retired from the sport, and at 38, Nadal announced his retirement.
Djokovic, who is the youngest of the three, is still competing, but this year has been his worst on the ATP Tour in almost a decade. Is it because of his age or just a bad form? No one knows, but he definitely rejected being 'too old' when asked after his most recent match at the 2024 Shanghai Masters.
Djokovic beat 18 years younger Jakub Mensik, and following his quarter-final victory over the Czech player, the 24-time Grand Slam champion was asked whether there were moments in the match when he felt like he was 'too old.'
"Not really, to be honest. In terms of, mentally I felt good. I mean, I did feel quite tight at the end of the first, and I wasn't playing my best tennis at that point, so I was a bit upset with myself for not closing out the first set."
After swiftly rejecting the 'too old' comment, Djokovic focused mostly on his performance in the match, as well as his opponent, who he knows through his former physiotherapist.
"But I bounced back, you know, I started off the second very well, won 6-1. Third set, I had a lot of opportunities in his service games, but, you know, his serve is tremendous, so much pace and power and precision, very difficult to play him."
"I know him for three, four years, I've been following his rise through the rankings, his development. He's a nice guy, super talented player, great prospect. He's got a bright future, for sure, if he keeps going."
"He's got good people around him, his physiotherapist used to be my physiotherapist, Sascha. So I still follow him, he knows that he's one of my favorite players to watch, and I'm always supportive of him, so, you know, hopefully we can have some more encounters and big battles."
Despite failing to win any major titles in 2024, Djokovic's ability to perform so close to his 40s certainly shouldn't be underestimated. At the end of the day, he's the man that managed to win the most major titles after turning 35 and at the Paris Olympics this year, he proved that he can still play his best tennis.