Novak Djokovic has revealed that his daughter is furious with him following his US Open victory against Jan-Lennard Struff as the result means he will miss her eighth birthday party. The 38-year-old cruised into the quarter-finals despite being forced to contend with an injury during the match.
Djokovic is searching for a record-extending 25th men’s Grand Slam title in New York after failing to win a Major since his US Open triumph in 2023. The Serbian was rarely troubled by Struff as he secured a 6-3, 6-3, 6-2 win. And he will now face American ace Taylor Fritz in the quarter-finals.
Djokovic’s daughter will celebrate her eighth birthday on Tuesday. And after being quizzed about missing the celebration following his win against Struff, the veteran explained: “It is what it is. We predicted that might happen.
“She was not very happy about it, me being absent from the birthday party. So don’t remind me of that, please. But I’ll try to win.
“But hopefully the win can be something she can be happy with. But again, yeah, daddy away. And daddy present is a big difference, and I know that. But it is what it is this year.”
Djokovic has struggled to compete with Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner over the last couple of years, with the previous seven Grand Slam titles being won by either the Spaniard or the Italian.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion took time away from tennis between this year’s Wimbledon and US Open as he opted to spend time with his family instead of playing in other tournaments.
Ahead of the final Major of the year, he explained: “Obviously I didn’t have any matches since Wimbledon but I’ve put in a lot of training in the last three to four weeks.
“I decided not to play because I wanted to spend more time with my family. And to be honest I think I’ve earned my right and have the luxury of picking and choosing where I want to go and what I want to play. My focus is mostly on the Slams and I’ve said that before.”
And discussing his daughter’s birthday in a separate interview before the tournament got underway, Djokovic said: “I am maybe going to miss out on my daughter’s birthday if I’m doing well [and] I’m still here.
“But those are types of things that I really don’t want to be missing anymore.
“So it’s just on a personal level for me important to be there, to show up, you know, for the people that have been showing up for me for all these years playing tennis.”
