Novak Djokovic talks tennis career, aging in the sport and Serena Williams’ return

Tennis icon Novak Djokovic says “there’s always something to prove” to himself and to others — even though he has a record 24 Grand Slam singles titles.

“I can always be better than I was yesterday,” he told “CBS Mornings” co-host Gayle King in an interview that aired on Friday.

At 39 years old, Djokovic is still “thinking about playing great tennis,” but added his body reminds him of his age.

“You’re just … trying to take every percentage of extra edge that I can get to be able to still compete at an elite level with young guys,” he said. 

Djokovic was defeated by eventual champion Jannik Sinner in the semifinals at Wimbledon earlier this month. The semifinal loss came after a draining, 5-hour-and-15-minute quarterfinal victory over Felix Auger Aliassime.

“The body is responding differently and that’s just biology … the wear and tear, the 20-plus years on the highest level, it’s just taking its toll,” Djokovic said, reflecting on the tournament. “I just couldn’t fully recover for the semis and I wasn’t as fresh as I wanted to be. But not to take anything away from Sinner who won … the tournament, but it’s just, it’s different nowadays.”

Now, his focus is set on the U.S. Open in New York City next month.

Djokovic’s biggest competition?

“Myself, always,” he said.

“It’s the most, I think, entertaining, most exciting Grand Slam. … One of the biggest things of why I still compete is the energy of the crowd and the appreciation and respect that I’ve been getting, particularly in the last several years, around the world is something I … cannot thank people enough.”

Family support

Despite holding the all-time record for the most weeks — 428 — spent as No. 1 in men’s singles, tennis was not a natural fit for the Serbian player.

“I do come from a family of professional skiers,” Djokovic said.

He was 4 years old when he started playing tennis and said no one had “touched the racket in my family, extended family, ever before.”

“We don’t have a tennis tradition in Serbia. We didn’t have it to that point. And then I was interested,” he said. “I fell in love. I asked my dad to buy me a racket and that’s how the whole love story with tennis started.”

For the tennis legend, the sport was his safe space.

“I would connect it to my childhood, my upbringing, war-torn country, several wars during [the] ’90s, embargo, sanctions, economical crisis, social crisis, you know, crisis of every kind. I chose [the] most expensive sport and my parents wanted to support me,” he said.

He also credits his wife and children for their support in helping him continue to live his dream.

“I leave them, the absence, missing out on some important dates and events in their life … it’s hard,” Djokovic said. “But I also want to balance it out now. That’s why I don’t play as much as I used to, because I want to be the best husband, father, brother, son that I could possibly be.”

“It’s already epic”

Last month, Serena Williams returned to the court after the 44-year-old stepped away from professional tennis for nearly four years.

“Let’s enjoy and celebrate who she is, what she has achieved,” Djokovic told “CBS Mornings.”

At Wimbledon, Williams lost her opening singles match and had to withdraw from the doubles match she was scheduled to play with her sister, Venus, due to a knee injury.

“It doesn’t matter if she wins or loses, it’s already epic,” Djokovic said. “It’s what I told her personally in Wimbledon and it’s what I truly honestly feel in my heart. So I want her to feel happy and joyful on the court because in a sense, to some extent, I know how it feels, still trying to push at that age when you have achieved everything that you possibly can.”

Next month, a new documentary called “Novak Djokovic: The Wolf in Winter” will give a behind-the-scenes look at the tennis star’s life and career.