MELBOURNE, Australia -- It's five days from the beginning of the Australian Open and Novak Djokovic has just emerged from the shadows of the Rod Laver Arena players tunnel for the first of his pre-tournament practice sessions. He strides to his bench and dumps enough baggage for a two-week vacation before lacing his shoes and deliberately pirouetting toward the net, taking in a 360-degree view of the court and stadium that have defined his renowned career.
For a brief moment, the unmistakable mischievous grin that has become almost a permanent feature of Djokovic's face is replaced by a satisfied smile, giving the impression to a minor media contingent scattered around the grandstands that he will be soaking in this fortnight even more than usual.
"It's a 20-year anniversary," Djokovic proudly exclaimed at the beginning of his pre-tournament news conference, referencing his two decades of competition Down Under. "Back in 2005, it was the first time I qualified for any Grand Slam, and [I] played Marat Safin in the centre court. It was a pretty quick match for me. He later on won the tournament, but it was a very unique experience that allowed me to dream big and keep on believing that I can one day win a Slam. Three years later, I won my first Slam on the same court ... just lovely memories. I always try to relive those moments."
There's hardly a tennis rival Djokovic hasn't bested on Melbourne Park's iconic blue centre court. From his long-standing, epic rivalries with Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray to the brash, supposed up-and-comers of Dominic Thiem, Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas; if they've held a racket, Djokovic at one moment in time has reigned supreme over them en route to a record 10 Australian Open triumphs. But at age 37, as Djokovic begins his 21st tour of the ATP circuit, the most daunting challenger of his illustrious career is looming in the distance: Father Time. It's an opponent every great before him -- tennis or otherwise -- has eventually been humbled by. It's one that will inevitably catch up with him, too.
Twelve months ago, on this court, Djokovic suffered arguably the most brutal loss of his Australian Open career, a straight-sets semifinal drubbing at the hands of eventual champion Jannik Sinner. In the wake of the defeat, many pundits began speculating if it were the beginning of the end for the 24-time Grand Slam champion, but such reckless rationale was quickly proven nonsensical when six months later, after knee surgery, he reached the Wimbledon final. Then, four weeks later, under the blazing Paris sun, he produced a masterpiece to beat Spanish ace Carlos Alcaraz and add an elusive Olympic gold medal to his bulging trophy cabinet.
"He won the game of tennis after he won that Olympic gold," long-time rival John Isner said jokingly on the "Nothing Major" podcast in December. "He's still going, I know that, but he checked the final box of his career. It was like he finished the video game."
Time and again, Djokovic has defied age conventions and expectations, making a mockery of the many tennis scribes who have prematurely penned his sporting obituary. But even the seemingly indestructible and invincible Djokovic will eventually reach a point where his body finally screams enough. Even he will eventually succumb to that pesky little thing we call aging. When will that time come? Not even he knows.
"The way I'm feeling today, I still think that I can go strong for years to come," Djokovic told reporters ahead of last month's Brisbane International. "I still love this sport and I still love competing. I'm looking to play more tournaments this year than I played last season. How long that's going to be or how long I'm going to feel motivated to keep going, that's something unpredictable."
It's anyone's guess where the end of the road is for Djokovic. It could be next month, next year, or next Olympic cycle. Two-time Australian Open champion Jim Courier believes "there is nothing in his game that would indicate he is incapable of winning multiple majors going forward," while others think he could sail off into the sunset if he clinches one more Slam -- No. 25 -- and with it, the outright majors record he has desperately been chasing.
But something history does tell us is that when that end comes, it can arrive frighteningly quickly. Both Nadal and Murray, Djokovic's new coach, can certainly attest to that. Could this be the final time Djokovic meaningfully competes on Australian soil? Perhaps.
But the fact he remains a bona fide contender for the title -- he is the seventh seed this fortnight in Melbourne and was the third favorite among bookmakers when the tournament began -- at this juncture of his career shouldn't be taken for granted.
Tennis has been blessed with an abundance of icons over the past quarter century, but it's no longer opinion to say none has played the sport at a higher level or achieved greater success than Djokovic. And perhaps it's because of that his career has been normalized -- attempting to predict what his final Grand Slam title tally could be instead of recognizing and celebrating the grueling journey to each of those triumphs as they've unfolded.
Proof that his longevity is unprecedented? Look at the ridiculousness of his post-age-35 tennis résumé. If Djokovic's career had begun on that birthday, a little over 2½ years ago, he would already be the most accomplished player on the ATP tour, with four Grand Slam titles, six major final appearances, two ATP Finals titles, 59 weeks at world No. 1, and that aforementioned Olympic gold medal.
Australia has always shared a prickly and somewhat complicated relationship with the Serbian megastar. It was here where a fresh-faced Djokovic announced himself to the world in 2008, taking down Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the Australian Open final to win his maiden Grand Slam title. Djokovic would go on to add another nine Norman Brookes Challenge Cups to his résumé over the next 15 years, but despite the overwhelming success, he never came close to rivals Federer and Nadal on the general public's scale of love and fanfare. That was only exacerbated in 2021 when he had his Australian visa canceled and was deported from the country on the eve of the tournament for breaching its strict COVID-19 entry requirements.
But irrespective of the complicated opinions on Djokovic, the athlete or the man, these are likely the final tournaments of his legendary career. Tennis, and sport in general, is better for having Djokovic competing. We're unlikely to see anyone quite like him again.