Andre Agassi, the eight-time Major winner, shared his thoughts on Novak Djokovic’s future. He said Djokovic might face emotional challenges as his great rivals have retired. However, Agassi warned against writing him off. 

The 37-year-old Djokovic is nearing the end of his career. Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Andy Murray have all retired recently. Agassi compared it to his own experience after Pete Sampras retired.

As published in PTI, Agassi, at an event in Bengaluru “He’s already done so much, so long, and it’s hard to imagine longer. I think he’ll run out of the energy for it more than the capability of it, I would imagine.” 

“It cannot be easy, especially when the people you came to the dance with have left,” Agassi said. 

He further exemplified his own life and stated, “When Pete (Sampras) retired, it was a blow to me. It set me back a little bit. It made me have to rediscover my inspirations on some level. And he’s (Djokovic) lost the guys that he’s made history with. So, it’s probably emotionally going to get tougher and tougher quickly, but I would never bet against him. Bet against him at your own peril.”

Interestingly, Djokovic has turned to one of his great rivals to elevate his game after a major-less 2024, despite winning Olympic gold. Former World No. 1 Andy Murray has joined Djokovic's team as his coach.

“They’ve been fierce rivals on court, and now Murray will be coaching Djokovic. Well, in any coaching-student relationship, you need trust. Trust can take time,” Agassi said. “I think there’s an asset to their history as competitors, but any success of a relationship is based on complete buy-in.”