Novak Djokovic has decided to skip the 2024 Miami Open following his surprise early exit in Indian Wells in a decision that reinforces his priorities and focus on the big picture.
Having entered Miami, Djokovic had planned to play the ATP Masters 1000 tournament for the first time since 2016, but he has now altered his schedule.
The world No 1 suffered a huge upset at the hands of world No 123 Luca Nardi in the third round of the 2024 Indian Wells Open earlier this week.
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Serbian journalist Sasa Ozmo reported on Thursday that Djokovic would not feature in the second leg of the ‘Sunshine Double’ in Miami, which will run from March 20-31.
While Djokovic’s withdrawal may surprise some given his titleless start to 2024 and fairly limited action so far this season, it is a move that makes sense in a number of ways.
Firstly, it allows Djokovic significantly more time to prepare for the European clay-court season. Playing the hard-court tournament in Miami would have meant a swift surface change had Djokovic gone deep at the event, which ends just a week before the first big clay-court tournament begins in Monte Carlo on April 7.
This may not have been the ideal preparation for a crucial part of the campaign for the tennis legend, who turns 37 in May and has managed his schedule masterfully in the latter part of his career.
The build-up to the year’s second Grand Slam at Roland Garros is now, understandably, the priority for Djokovic — who has repeatedly stressed in recent years that peaking for the four majors is his primary focus at this stage.
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The 24-time Grand Slam titlist is the defending champion at the French Open, having downed Casper Ruud to claim his third title at the clay-court major last year.
Djokovic suffered his first loss at the Australian Open since 2018 when he was beaten by eventual champion Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals of the 2024 edition in January following a lacklustre performance.
This means this year’s French Open, arguably, takes on heightened importance for Djokovic after a rare instance of him missing out in Melbourne, where he is an 11-time winner.
The fact the 2024 Olympic Games will be staged on the red clay courts at Stade Roland Garros could be another reason for Djokovic to place added emphasis on training on the surface and having a strong clay-court campaign.
Along with fighting for every Grand Slam title, Djokovic has frequently outlined that representing Serbia remains a big priority for him. Winning a medal at the Olympics, in particular, is a huge goal.
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An Olympic gold medal is the only major prize in tennis to have eluded Djokovic during his astonishing career to date, with his best result at the Games coming in 2008, when he earned a bronze.
While the Miami Open is a highly prestigious tournament, the Serbian has already won it six times, and it is not on par with the four majors or the Olympics.
The 1000 ATP ranking points on offer are valuable, but not crucial to Djokovic, given he is guaranteed to retain the world No 1 position until after the event –since he is defending no points from 2023.
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In any case, retaining top spot is no longer as critical for Djokovic as he already holds the all-time records for the most weeks at world No 1 and ATP year-end No 1 finishes — the former by a huge margin that continues to grow.
