Novak Djokovic admitted that he might have played his final match at Roland Garros following his semi-final loss to world No 1 Jannik Sinner.
The 24-time Grand Slam winner, who turned 38 last month, conceded Sinner had been “too good for me” after going down 6-4, 7-5, 7-6 to the Italian on Court Philippe Chatrier.
Djokovic certainly made Sinner work for his victory which means the 23-year-old is now on a 20-match winning streak in majors as he heads into the final against defending champion Carlos Alcaraz.
And after the match, Djokovic revealed he is yet to decide whether he will back again in Paris next year in a bid to win a fourth French Open crown.
“This could have been the last match ever I played here – I don't know. That's why it was a bit more emotional at the end,” said the Serbian, who was Roland Garros champion in 2016, 2021 and 2023.
“But if this was the farewell match of Roland Garros for me in my career, it was a wonderful one in terms of the atmosphere and what I got from the crowd.”
When pressed on whether he would return, sixth seed Djokovic added: “I don't know right now. Twelve months at this point in my career is quite a long time.
“Do I wish to play more? Yes, I do. But will I be able to play in 12 months' time here again? I don't know. That's all I can say for the moment.”
But the former world No 1 did make clear that attempting to secure Grand Slam No 25 in London and New York later this year “are the priorities of my schedule”.
“Wimbledon and US Open, yes, they are in plans,” he said of the tournaments where he has seven and four titles, respectively. “That's all I can say right now.
“I feel like I want to play those two, for sure. For the rest, I'm not so sure.
“Wimbledon is my childhood favourite tournament. I'm going to do everything possible to get myself ready.
“I guess my best chances maybe are Wimbledon, you know, to win another Slam or maybe Australia.”
Sunday's first major final between Sinner and Djokovic feels very much the like changing of the guard of a men's game that has been dominated for so long by Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.
With the latter two now retired and the former seemingly closing in on calling it a day, the two young guns of world tennis have taken centre stage.
Sinner, who is yet to drop a set in the tournament, will be hoping to gain revenge on Alcaraz after losing to the Spaniard in five sets in the semi-finals last year.
Alcaraz has won his last four matches against Sinner, including in the Italian Open final in May when Sinner returned from a three-month doping ban.
“It takes time to compare us with the big three,” said Sinner, who will be playing in his first Roland Garros final.
“I believe that tennis or every sport needs rivalries, no? This could be potentially one of these, but there are amazing players coming up.
“Sunday is going to be very difficult, I know my head-to-head lately doesn't look great against Carlos but let's see what I can do,” added Sinner, who is a three-time Grand Slam champion.
Alcaraz, meanwhile, secured his final spot against Sinner after his last-four opponent Lorenzo Musetti was forced to retire due to a leg injury with the Spaniard leading 4-6, 7-6, 6-0, 2-0.
The world's top two played each other less than three weeks ago when Alcaraz came out on top in Rome but the four-time major winner is fully aware of the challenge ahead of him.
“He's the best tennis player right now,” Alcaraz said of the Italian. “I mean, he's destroying every opponent.
“I love that battle. But most of the time is just about suffering, because [he pushes] you to the limit.
“It gives you feedback of how I can be a better player. I think that's important, and that's beautiful. Even if I win or not, it gives you a lot of stats and gives you feedback.
“It's going to be a really great Sunday for fans of tennis.”
