"How long is Novak Djokovic going to do this for?" - Serena Williams’ ex-coach Rennae Stubbs voices concern over Serb’s recurring injuries

Serena Williams' ex-coach, Rennae Stubbs, highlighted Novak Djokovic's injury-laden latter half of tournaments. The Aussie voiced her concerns about the Serb and questioned how long he could continue playing like this.

For the past year or so, Djokovic has regularly taken Medical Time Outs (MTOs) during matches because of injuries, especially in the latter half of tournaments. Notably, he retired mid-match from the Australian Open semifinal and faced losses in each of the next three Grand Slam semifinals.

More recently, he faced World No. 204 Valentin Vacherot in the semifinal of the Shanghai Masters. He faced injury troubles here as well, and eventually crashed out in a huge upset. Speaking about it during The Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast, the former doubles World No. 1 said (from 7:00):

"He's just breaking down all the time. If there was a legit injury, which I'm assuming it was in the first set, he looked pretty good in the second set. But the same thing keeps happening in the latter parts of tournaments for him, right?"

While acknowledging him as the greatest player of all time with unmatched records, Stubbs said it’s clear that age is beginning to take its toll.

"Novak just doesn't look like he has enough on the ball anymore against some of these players... At some point, and I've spoken about it for months, actually maybe even a year or two, Father Time catches up with you," she said.

Stubbs added that the decline has been noticeable for a while now and wondered how much longer the Serbian star can continue competing at this level.

"At some point, it catches up with you, and, you just wonder, how long is he going to do this for?"

Currently, the Serb is in Saudi Arabia, as he played in the lucrative Six Kings Slam exhibition event.

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"I hope I am wrong" - Serena Williams' ex-coach Rennae Stubbs makes bold prediction about Novak Djokovic's future

Rennae Stubbs and Serena Williams at the 2022 US Open - Source: Getty

Serena Williams' ex-coach, Rennae Stubbs, claimed Novak Djokovic might call it a day after playing in the Australian Open next year. Stubbs admitted she hopes her concerns about the Serb are unfounded, saying she genuinely wants him to keep playing.

However, during her podcast, she questioned whether Djokovic will still have the motivation to keep grinding through the long season ahead.

"I hope I am wrong. I want him to keep playing. But I just feel like is he going to want to keep just grinding until the French and Wimbledon again? That’s nine months away essentially," Serena Williams' ex-coach, Rennae Stubbs, said (from 8:00).

She added that Djokovic no longer has anything left to prove.

"He's not trying to win another Masters 1000 or 500, he has got all the records, there is no reason for him to play any more,"

In 2025, Djokovic holds a 35-11 record, including an ATP 250 title in Geneva. He is on his way to comfortably qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals, but his participation remains uncertain.