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Novak Djokovic Reflects on the Importance of Grand Slams as He Prepares for Paris Masters

Preparing for the last Masters 1000 tournament of 2026, Novak Djokovic is set to face Basel Open champion Valentin Vacherot in the opening round of the Paris Masters. The Serbian star has claimed 24 Grand Slam titles throughout his career and despite playing only ten ATP events this year, he remains in the running for a spot at the ATP Finals.

This is mainly due to his strong performances in Grand Slams, where he reached the final in Melbourne and the semifinals at Wimbledon. Ahead of Paris, Djokovic shared his thoughts on how Grand Slam tournaments rank in his current priorities.

Djokovic on the Role of Grand Slams in His Career

"Grand Slams remain, of course, the most important tournaments we have. For me, and I think for 99 percent of players, they are the historic pillars of our sport—where you want to play your best tennis and make your name in the history books," Djokovic said during a press conference in Paris.

He added, "I still want to perform my best in Slams, but I also want to do well in other tournaments." This year, Djokovic’s focus shifted more toward feeling physically good on the court rather than just playing well, as health issues affected much of his season.

"Physically, it was tough. I struggled a lot, not because of preparation or training—people like to speculate, but they don’t know," he explained.

Current ATP Finals Standings (as of November 3, 2026)

  • 8th: Rafael Jodar - 3234 points
  • 9th: Alex de Minaur - 3170 points
  • 10th: Novak Djokovic - 2900 points
  • 11th: Taylor Fritz - 2860 points

Over the past year, Djokovic has faced an ongoing health condition that limited his ability to endure long matches, which showed in his surprising first-round exit at the US Open — his earliest major loss since 2006. Luckily, he seems to be making progress against this problem.

"Whenever I’ve felt better on court lately, it feels like we’re closer to solving what I’ve been dealing with over the last twelve months," Djokovic said. "My performance, enjoyment, and feeling on court have improved. Beijing was my best week this year aside from Australia, and I played well in Basel too."

Summary of Djokovic's 2026 Grand Slam Results

  • Australian Open: Reached final, lost to Carlos Alcaraz after defeating Jannik Sinner
  • Roland Garros: Third-round loss to Joao Fonseca, who came back from two sets down
  • Wimbledon: Lost in semi-finals to Jannik Sinner in straight sets
  • US Open: Shocked in first round by Thiago Agustin Tirante

Reflecting on recent matches, Djokovic commented, "That was a tight loss [to Jan-Lennard Struff], but I’m focused on enjoying the final weeks of the season and feeling better physically. Performance will follow, we’ll see what happens next."

Challenging Opener at Paris Masters

Seeded tenth, Djokovic’s first-round opponent Valentin Vacherot has been in excellent form, having won the Basel title recently. The Monegasque player also secured the Shanghai Masters title in 2025, showing he can compete at the highest level. Djokovic must stay sharp to avoid an upset.

The winner between Djokovic and Vacherot will face Australian qualifier Rinky Hijikata in the second round, who defeated Luciano Darderi in the first round.

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