24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic remains optimistic about competing against the best players in the world next season despite his loss to Jannik Sinner at the Shanghai Masters. The Serbian was playing in the Chinese Masters Series event for the first time since 2019.

Djokovic has faced Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, the two top players of 2024, four times this year, holding a 1-3 record against them. His sole victory came in the Olympic Gold medal match in Paris against Alcaraz.

Despite his Olympic success, Djokovic has not met the high standards expected of him in 2024. This is the first year since 2017 that the Serb has gone without a Grand Slam title. If he skips the BNP Paribas Masters, where he is the defending champion, he will also finish the year without a Masters Series title.

Djokovic’s best result outside of the Olympics was reaching the Wimbledon final, where he lost to Alcaraz. Now, he has also lost the Shanghai Masters final to Sinner.

Novak Djokovic lost the Shanghai Masters final to Jannik Sinner 7-6, 6-3 on Sunday (October 13). Despite the defeat, the Serb has improved his chances of qualifying for the Nitto ATP World Tour Finals.

Djokovic is a seven-time ATP World Tour Finals champion, an Open Era record. The 37-year-old defeated Sinner in last year’s final to achieve this historic milestone.

Due to his below-par results in 2024, Djokovic is currently ranked No. 6 in the ‘Race to Turin’ standings with 3,910 points. So far, Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, and Alexander Zverev have secured their spots for the season-ending event.

Ahead of Djokovic, Daniil Medvedev and Taylor Fritz are comfortably positioned with 4,820 and 4,290 points, respectively. The cut-off for ATP Finals qualification stands at 5,095 points.