Novak Djokovic inspired by LeBron, Brady to play beyond 40

Novak Djokovic says he has been inspired by LeBron James, Cristiano Ronaldo and Tom Brady as he targets continuing his professional career into his 40s.

“Longevity is one of my biggest motivations. I really want to see how far I can go,” Djokovic said Thursday at the Joy Forum in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, ahead of appearing at the Six Kings Slam. “If you see across all the global sports, LeBron James, he is still going strong, he is 40. Cristiano Ronaldo, Tom Brady played until he was 40-something years old. It is unbelievable.

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“They are inspiring me as well, so I want to keep going, that is one of the motivations I have.”

Djokovic, 38, has gone two years without winning a Grand Slam title, having been overtaken by Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, but says he is not yet thinking about hanging up his racket as he tries to win a 25th major to break the record for most Slam singles titles by a man or woman.

Djokovic’s comments Thursday had a different tone from what he said after being eliminated from Grand Slams this year. After losing to Sinner in the French Open semifinals, he hinted it could have been “the last match I ever played” at Roland Garros. Following a straight-sets loss to Alcaraz in the US Open semifinals, Djokovic lamented that he may not be able to beat Alcaraz and Sinner in the best-of-five-sets format of majors.

But he also had said he planned to play all four Grand Slams in 2026, and playing past 40 would extend his career at least into 2027.

Brady played quarterback in the NFL until he was 45, while James and Ronaldo are both 40 as they continue to play.

Djokovic, who co-founded the Professional Tennis Players Association in 2020, is also hoping to use his influence to improve the sport.

Leading players are pushing the Grand Slams for a greater share of revenue, while the PTPA launched lawsuits against tennis’s governing bodies earlier this year in an effort to force through changes.

“I want to also live to see — live meaning keep on playing professionally — what is coming for our sport, and I am super excited about it,” Djokovic said. “These are things I can’t be openly speaking about at the moment, but in the next couple of years, I feel like tennis is a sport that can be greatly transformed, and I want to be part of that change.”

Information from ESPN’s D’Arcy Maine and PA was used in this report.