Novak Djokovic set to play doubles with Filip Krajinovic at Paris Masters
World No. 1 Novak Djokovic will make his much-awaited return to the court at the Paris Masters, scheduled to begin next week. The Serb is gunning for a record-extending sixth title at Paris-Bercy. Djokovic will also be competing in the doubles event, partnering with fellow Serb Filip Krajinović.
The duo will take on the Australian pair of Luke Saville and Alex de Minaur in their opening match. The Serbian pair last played together at this year's ATP Cup in Melbourne, where they defeated Canada's Milos Raonic and Denis Shapovalov in straight sets.
Djokovic was last seen in action at the US Open, where he lost an all-important final to Russian Daniil Medvedev. The defeat ended the Serb's bid to complete the Calendar Grand Slam and also prevented him from overtaking rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in the Slam race.
Djokovic, who has won more matches at the Paris Masters than any other player, last competed at the tournament in 2019, when he lifted the trophy. He chose not to participate in the 2020 edition of the competition, which was won by Daniil Medvedev.
Guy Forget just stated that Novak Djokovic will play singles and doubles in the #RolexPMasters #Djokovic. "It didn't happen too often".
Novak Djokovic gunning for sixth title in Paris and year-end No. 1 ranking
If Novak Djokovic goes on to win the Paris Masters for the sixth time in his career, he would take his Masters 1000 tally to 37, breaking the tie he currently shares with Rafael Nadal.
That is not the only milestone at stake for the World No. 1. He is also hoping to seal the year-end No. 1 ranking for the seventh time, which would move him past Pete Sampras' tally of six. The Serb can do so by winning the Paris Masters next week regardless of what World No. 2 Daniil Medvedev achieves over the rest of the season.
Earlier this week, Djokovic was spotted practicing with Medevdev, who is the second seed in Paris. As the top two seeds at the event, the pair can only clash in the final.