Novak Djokovic (SRB) waves to the crowd while leaving the court after his match against Carlos Alcaraz (ESP) (not pictured) in a men's singles semifinal on day thirteen of the 2025 US Open tennis championships at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

This stat shows Father Time has caught up to Novak Djokovic

By Zach Wadley | Last updated Sep 5, 2025 9:38 PM ET

Father Time is undefeated. Some sports stars have challenged time, prolonging their prime well past the normal stretch we're accustomed to, but in the end, time always wins.

Father Time has caught up to Novak Djokovic.

Djokovic is arguably the greatest men's tennis player of all time. He's the all-time leader with 24 Grand Slam titles to his name. But at 38 years old, he's been passed by a younger generation of stars.

As recently as 2023, Djokovic won three Grand Slam titles. In 2024, he won an Olympic gold medal. However, after a 6-4, 7-6, 6-2 defeat to Carlos Alcaraz Friday night in the U.S. Open semifinals, Djokovic has now lost in the semis of all four Grand Slams this season.

Not only that, but Djokovic has failed to win a single set in the semis this season. Sinner and Alcaraz are simply too much for him to handle in a five-set match.

Novak Djokovic says Jannik Sinner & Carlos Alcaraz are too good:

“I lost 3 out of 4 slams in semis against these guys. They’re just too good.”

“Best of 5 makes it very very difficult for me to play them. Particularly at the end stages of Grand Slams.”

(via U.S. Open Press) pic.twitter.com/CFZTzAwW8g
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) September 5, 2025

He retired from his match against Alexander Zverev in the Australian Open after losing the first set, was swept by Sinner in both the French Open and Wimbledon, and was swept by Alcaraz on Friday.

Clearly, Djokovic is still a great player. In fact, he's proven he's still the third-best player in the world — a preposterous notion at 38 years old. Few in the history of the game can boast they've advanced to the semifinals of all four Grand Slams in a single season, but that is the new ceiling for him. He's now two years removed from his last Grand Slam, and the gap is widening between himself and Alcaraz and Sinner.

Hard not to feel for Djokovic in this purgatory….He’s legit the third-best player in the world - still too good to walk away… But the two guys ahead of him are just too young /physical/ tough… What’s the 38-year-old unrivaled champion to do?
— Jon Wertheim (@jon_wertheim) September 5, 2025

Djokovic fought off Father Time admirably, winning well into his 30s, but with the 2025 Grand Slams in the books, it's clear he's relinquished the throne to a younger generation.

Zach Wadley

Zach Wadley's sportswriting career began at the age of 12 when he started covering Little League games for his local newspaper. Since then, he's worked in the sports information field where he merged his love of writing, social media, and broadcasting. He is a graduate of Anderson University (IN).

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