Djokovic pulls out of Paris Masters, leaving season in doubt

Novak Djokovic has withdrawn from the Paris Masters later this month, raising doubts over whether the former world No.1 will play again in 2024.

Having already announced that he will not participate in the Belgrade Open, and with Serbia not making the Davis Cup Final 8, the 37-year-old is not confirmed to play any more top-flight tennis tournaments this season.

The only chance of Djokovic playing again this year is if he qualifies for the ATP Finals.

However, his withdrawal from the last Masters 1000 event of the season — which he has won a record seven times — puts his qualification for the year-end finals in serious doubt.

Djokovic sits sixth in the Race to Turin on 3,910 points, with eight players earning places at the November event.

Several of the players behind him have opportunities to overtake him over the next three weeks.

Casper Ruud (3,845), Andrey Rublev (3,670), Alex de Minaur (3,355), Tommy Paul (3,135) and Grigor Dimitrov (3,100) are all within 810 points of the Serbian superstar.

Should three of those five perform well in this week’s ATP 500 tournaments plus the Paris Masters, there is a good chance Djokovic will slip out of qualification for the ATP Finals.

Even if the 24-time Grand Slam champion does qualify, there is a question of whether or not he will choose to participate.

Last month, Djokovic revealed that playing in the year-end event is not a priority at this stage of his career.

“Torino is not my goal at all, to be honest,” he said.

“I am not chasing ATP Finals, I am not chasing the rankings.

“As far as I am concerned, I am done with those tournaments for my career.

“Whether I will play other tournaments this year or in the future, I can’t say right now.

“My main priorities are playing for the national team and Slams, everything else is less important.”

Despite his reduced schedule, Djokovic still holds strong odds across top tennis betting sites for the next Grand Slam.

Bovada has the 10-time Australian Open champion at a field-leading +175 to win in Melbourne next January, ahead of world No.1 Jannik Sinner and four-time Grand Slam winner Carlos Alcaraz at +250 apiece.

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