Novak Djokovic’s latest comments labelled as a ‘bad sign’ for Frances Tiafoe as he reaches the final in Beijing

The veteran qualified for the ATP Finals in both 2024 and 2025, but withdrew on both occasions because of injury. Those withdrawals arrived after he clinched the title in 2023 for a record seventh time. Djokovic plans to be at the event this time around, and that ambition has just been labelled as a worrying sign for many American players, including Frances Tiafoe.

Novak Djokovic’s ATP Finals plans labelled a ‘bad sign’ for Frances Tiafoe

Speaking on the Nothing Major Show, former ATP player Sam Querrey said of the situation: “Novak has said ‘I want to play the year-end Finals’. I thought he was going to take the rest of the year off but now, all of a sudden, I feel like a lot of those guys like Tommy Paul, Tiafoe and [Taylor] Fritz – the guys in the seven to 10 range on the race – I bet they thought Novak wasn’t going to play.

“Now all of a sudden Novak comes out with that quote, I feel like that group of guys will be like ‘really?’ Now he is probably going to win Beijing. That is brutal for that group because they have not had to deal with that over the last two years.”

Agreeing, Steve Johnson commented: “Novak has not been pencilled in for the World Tour Finals, he has been in in permanent marker for the last two decades! Even last year he made it and didn’t want to play. The last two years he has not played Turin, so I was going off of what he has done the last couple of years, and that hasn’t been too important to him.

“I figured this year would be no different but when he says he wants to make Turin, I fully expect him to make it, based on just saying that alone. Now he is playing in Asia. He is going to play Shanghai next week. That is a bad sign for the guys in six, seven, eight and nine because one of them is getting bumped out.”

There has, however, been a significant development since the verdict from Querrey and Johnson. Jannik Sinner has ended his 2026 season because of injury, thus freeing up a space at the ATP Finals. Alongside Zverev and Carlos Alcaraz, the Italian had already secured his place in Turin.

What are the current ATP Race to Turin rankings?

The top eight players will qualify for the ATP Finals in Turin, which returns to the schedule from 15-22 November. And while Ben Shelton is closing in on a place, especially after Sinner’s withdrawal, it is not exactly looking good for his fellow Americans.

As things now stand in the absence of the Italian, Tiafoe will move up one spot to fifth, but Fritz will be in 11th and Paul will be further back in 13th, with that duo very unlikely to make the cut. But even Tiafoe finds himself in a fierce battle for the remaining spots, with Arthur Fils, De Minaur and Medvedev all in contention. The Russian will, however, lose his ranking points after his default in Beijing, along with his prize money.

Still, it is a very exciting race, and one that should experience many more twists and turns between now and the start of the tournament. After the China Open, the ATP Masters 1000 Shanghai will take place, while its Paris counterpart returns to the calendar at the start of November.

Sidelined with a right knee injury for the foreseeable future, Sinner has won the last two editions of the ATP Finals, defeating Fritz and Alcaraz in 2024 and 2025 respectively to lift the trophy. He also reached the final in 2023, but was beaten by Djokovic. The Serbian’s seven titles are one more than fellow legend Roger Federer.

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