World number two on the ATP tour, Novak Djokovic will kick off his 2023 North American hard-court swing at the Cincinnati Masters, where he is entered in both singles and doubles draws.
Djokovic has not played since a five-set defeat at this year's Wimbledon final to Spain's Carlos Alcaraz. The loss was Djokovic's first on Wimbledon's hallowed Centre Court in 10 years and which ended his reign as a four-time defending champion at the All England Club.
Djokovic was scheduled to return to North America this summer following a change in the Covid-19 policy in both Canada and the United States, which meant that he would be free to play events at the Canadian Open, Cincinnati Masters, and the 2023 US Open, while unvaccinated.
The Serbian star, however, has elected to skip the Toronto Masters in the second week of August due to fatigue. Djokovic, at 36, is the oldest player in the world's Top 40 and will begin his preparations for the year's final major in Cincinnati, where he is slated to play singles and now doubles.
He will join forces with fellow Serbian Nikola Cacic, ranked 57th in the doubles rankings. While the news came a bit out of nowhere, it makes perfect sense considering that the Cincinnati Masters will be Djokovic's only tuneup event for the US Open.
Djokovic has played one match in doubles this year, which came during the Australian swing. He partnered with his good friend Vasek Pospisil in Adelaide but lost their opening match in three sets. Djokovic, though, managed to win the singles title at the event and went on to capture a record-extending 10th Australian Open title.
Among the players to take the doubles court in Cincinnati include top-10 players such as Stefanos Tsitsipas and Andrey Rublev. Hamburg champion Alexander Zverev will team up with experienced doubles player Marcelo Melo.
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