Djokovic matches Federer's unique record, continuing a new chapter in his legendary career.

20/10/2025 06:49:00 PANDATV

Novak Djokovic has continued to make history by qualifying for the ATP Finals for the 18th time, matching the record held by Roger Federer.

Djokovic reaches a new historic milestone in his career.

This is an astonishing milestone for the Serbian player, who first took part in the tournament for the top 8 players of the year in 2007 at just 20 years old.

Since then, Djokovic has missed the event only twice: in 2017 and 2024. He holds the record for the most singles titles at the ATP Finals, and if he competes in Turin, he will aim for his eighth trophy—a feat unprecedented in tennis history.

However, the big question is whether Djokovic will play in Turin. The 38-year-old was forced to retire in his match against Taylor Fritz at the Six Kings Slam due to injury.

This season, he has skipped many tournaments to conserve his energy. Djokovic has confirmed he will participate in the tournament in his hometown Athens, but his remaining schedule is still unknown. Nevertheless, it is certain that he, along with Carlos Alcaraz (Spain) and Jannik Sinner (Italy), are the first three players to officially qualify for the 2025 ATP Finals.

Novak Djokovic continues to make history by qualifying for the ATP Finals for the 18th time, equaling the record held by Roger Federer.

One factor that helped Djokovic secure his spot early at Riyadh was his consistent Grand Slam performance. For many players, reaching the semifinals in all four Grand Slams is impressive, but for Djokovic, this is the first season since 2017 without reaching a Grand Slam final. He had to withdraw from the Australian Open against Alexander Zverev, while Sinner and Alcaraz stopped his progress in the other three majors.

At the Masters 1000 level, Djokovic’s form has been less convincing. In the first four tournaments, he was eliminated in the opening rounds at Indian Wells, Monte-Carlo, and Madrid.

The only highlight was his deep run to the Miami Masters final, where he lost to young talent Jakub Mensik after two intense tie-break sets. This was the 60th Masters 1000 final of his career, further extending his personal record.

Djokovic did not play any more Masters events until the Shanghai Masters, where he was a top favorite after many strong rivals were eliminated early. However, he was surprisingly stopped in the semifinals by world No. 204 Valentin Vacherot, who had a fairy-tale run in Shanghai.

Still, the 2025 season is not entirely bleak for Djokovic. He reached 100 ATP titles by winning the Geneva Open (ATP 250).

While many top players compete in Masters 1000 events to prepare for Grand Slams, Djokovic chose a different route by going to Switzerland to regain his form. He defeated Hubert Hurkacz in a tight three-set match to claim his 100th ATP title—a milestone only behind Jimmy Connors and Roger Federer in history.

Since 2007, Djokovic has missed qualifying for the ATP Finals only once (in 2017). He won the tournament on his second appearance by beating Nikolay Davydenko in straight sets.

In the next three years, Djokovic passed the group stage only once but then began a streak of four consecutive titles, including three wins over Federer (one by retirement) and a victory over Rafael Nadal in 2013.

Although this dominance ended, Djokovic maintained top form with six consecutive ATP Finals finals appearances, losing only to Andy Murray (2016) and Alexander Zverev (2018).

He failed to advance past the group stage in 2019—the first time in eight years—but then reached the semifinals consecutively and won two more titles in 2022 and 2023, defeating Casper Ruud and Jannik Sinner respectively.

His win over Sinner in 2023 was his last appearance at this prestigious event. Although qualified for the 2024 ATP Finals, he had to end his season early due to injury and could not compete.

By remaining among the world’s top players at age 38, Novak Djokovic not only demonstrates his skill and resilience but also confirms he is still a living legend in tennis—continuing to write brilliant chapters in his endless journey called "greatness."

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