NITTO ATP FINALS

November 16, 2023

Novak Djokovic

Pala Alpitour,Torino

Press Conference

N. DJOKOVIC/J. Hurkacz

7-6, 4-6, 6-1

THE MODERATOR: We'll go straight to questions.

Q. Yesterday Zverev said that he will be No. 1 fan of Medvedev in tomorrow's match because it can help him. What about you? You will be No. 1 fan of Jannik tonight?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: No, I will not be his fan. If he wins, I'll qualify. If he doesn't, I'll still finish the season with a win and look to Davis Cup.

That's all I feel now.

Q. What does the big champion feel when semifinals doesn't depend on you?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I was focused to win the match, so I did. The outcome of tonight's match is not in my hands, so... That's it. I'm really not thinking about it. I'm just thinking about hugging my kids at the moment.

Q. You mentioned hugging your kids. Given that things are up in the air, would you go home tonight and then come back if need be or do you hang around?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, they're here. They're coming in, so yeah...

Q. Will you watch tonight or have a nice dinner or...

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I don't know. They're priority for me now. I'll do some recovery, spend time with them, probably go for dinner. I probably won't see the match. Just follow the score.

Q. Looking to the next season, you always find a lot of motivation. We know how important is Serbia for you. I would like to know if the next season you will be thinking also about the Olympic Games?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: The season is not finished yet. Obviously I still don't know if I'm going to be qualified here. But Davis Cup is next week. I really would like to win the Davis Cup with Serbia. That's a goal. Next week is an important week for us, for our nation. We'll do our best.

That's where my thoughts are, then I'll think about the next season.

Q. There have always been some great images of you and the kids at a tournament after a final win or something. When you say you're going to spend time with the kids this evening or later today, what do you do when you're with them? Is it a case of reading storybooks? Playing with them?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: It really, really depends. I like to be outdoor with kids as much as we can. Obviously now it's a bit cold. Again, it really depends.

Obviously now it's a bit late, so probably we like to go swimming in the pool if that's possible. We just play around. We have different games that we play. We cuddle (smiling). I haven't seen them in a while. It's always nice to have them close.

Q. Talking about kids, I think the feeling that they are chasing you, these kids. Now is different compare this moment to the past. In the past, at Masters or ATP Finals, we have some strange situation. You know about the history of tennis. Someone decide to win or to lose or something to do. It's not the case for sure because Holger Rune and Jannik Sinner are very, very good and correct players. Which sort of battle do you expect tonight?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, I think it's not nice to call them kids because they are not kids. They are above 18, so you're officially not a kid anymore.

The field is strong. I mean, the generation of Alcaraz, Rune, Sinner is very strong. It's probably the three players that will carry this sport in the future but also in the present because they are right at the top of the game, all of them.

Of course, it's expected for young players to be hungry, to be motivated, and to constantly look for ways to improve, get stronger, faster, better, so they can beat the players, best players in the world, and clinch some, yeah, biggest trophies in the game.

What kind of battle do I expect tonight? I don't know. I don't know what Jannik is thinking about. Obviously knowing he has qualified even before he enters the court, I think it's a big relief. Knowing him, he's going to try to win every match that he plays. He's playing great. Rune, on the other hand, is playing great, too.

It will be interesting matchup because they are same generation, more or less. Yeah, they are big rivals. I think that's the kind of rivalries we're going to see in the future. I'm sure they don't want to lose against each other in any event, particularly this big.

Let's see what happens.

Q. About rivalry, yesterday Rafa Nadal announced he's sure he's going to play next year. What are your feeling about it? What is your feeling about maybe facing one of your greatest rival one more time?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I think it would be nice for the sport to have at least one more match between Nadal and me. That's the biggest rivalry in terms of the amount of matches played that this sport ever had. Hopefully that can happen.

He's a big warrior. He's somebody that really never gives up. With all the injuries that he had, keeps going. That's definitely something that you have to respect and admire about him and his spirit.

For the world of tennis, no doubt that it's amazing news that he'll be back.