Australian Open: Djokovic says he still has two more years in him

Dubai: It was just a walk in the Melbourne Park for 10-time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic on Thursday as he sauntered past Italian Francesco Maestrelli 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 in the second round.

The performance was as clinical as one would expect the 24-time Grand Slam champion to deliver, although, he was broken for the first time and as the world No 4 Serb knows all too well, definitely not for the last time as he navigates the potential banana skins in the early rounds of the Australian Open.

Djokovic takes on Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp in the third round, and as he told ESPN’s Latin American X handle following his second-round win on Thursday, even the thought of retirement hasn’t crossed his mind lately.

The Serb, who will turn 39 in May, pointed to two players older than him — Gael Monfils and Stan Wawrinka who are both on their farewell tours — as examples of longevity. While the former has bowed out with a first-round, four-set loss to Dane Sweeny, the latter turned back the clock with an epic five-set win against Arthur Gea in the second round on Thursday.

Djokovic, 38, said that he was younger than both those players and, as a result, had more time on his hands. “Monfils and Wawrinka both have left a great, great legacy as players. But as people as well, both players are friendly in the dressing room.

“Monfils is one year older than me, Wawrinka is two years older than me, so I think I have one or two years more at least,” the Serb said, again indicating his desire to defend his Olympic gold in Los Angeles 2028.

“I’m still living my dream to be honest. It’s passion and love for the game. It’s the interaction with people. It’s the energy that you feel when you walk out on the court. That adrenaline rush, it’s almost like a drug. I think that a lot of the top athletes from different sports can relate to that. I have been at least hearing them speak about that. It’s so addictive, you know, the feeling of competing,

“When that arrives and kind of becomes ripe in my head, I’ll share it with you, and then we can all discuss on the farewell tour,” he added.

For now, his only goal is be to win his 400th Grand Slam singles match on Saturday and become the first player to achieve that feat.