"That’s troubling": Former world number one questions motive behind Novak Djokovic's withdrawal from Rome Open

Former world number one Jim Courier believes that the withdrawal of Serbia’s Novak Djokovic from the upcoming Rome Open is ‘troubling’ and ‘worrying. The 37-year-old, who is regarded as the greatest player in the history of men’s tennis in the singles category in the Open era, having won as many as 24 Grand Slam titles, recently announced that he will not take part in the upcoming ATP 1000 event which is set to begin from May 07.

The decision came on the back of some very inconsistent performances from Djokovic in the recent past, who has not won a single ATP event since the start of 2024. The Belgrade-born star’s most recent outing was at the Madrid Open, where he was knocked out after losing in the second round to Italy’s Matteo Arnaldi in straight sets with a score of 6-3, 6-4. Out of the last four events, the former world number one has now been knocked out after losing the first match on three occasions.

Former world number one Courier has recently spoken to Tennis Channel, where he called Djokovic’s decision not to take part in the competition ‘troubling’ and ‘worrying’. The four-time Grand Slam winner stated that the decision does not make much sense as it would have given Djokovic a perfect opportunity to prepare for the upcoming second Grand Slam of the year, the French Open.

“Has he listed a reason why? That’s troubling, that’s worrying for me as a Novak fan,” said Courier. “It’s worrying because that’s the best place to get ready for Roland Garros, the conditions are very similar, it’s back at sea level. If you’re gonna play one between Madrid and Rome, Rome would be the one you’d want to play to get ready for Roland Garros. So I don’t know what to make of it, but I don’t like the way it feels in the gut. Definitely concerned, it’s a very strange thing to announce to pull out now, well in advance of it. And we’ll see what it all means when we get to Roland Garros.”