Novak Djokovic Pulls Out of Western & Southern Open

Top-ranked Novak Djokovic announced that he's pulling out of the Western & Southern Open on Monday and plans to make his return for the U.S. Open later this month. Djokovic says he needs time to recover after the grueling stretch he's had. 

"Dear Nole fam, I wanted to share with you that I'm taking a bit longer to recover after quite a physically taxing journey from Australian Open up to Tokyo," Djokovic said in a statement on social media. "Sadly, this means I won't be ready to compete in Cincinnati this year so I'll be turning my focus to the U.S. Open and spending more time with my family. Can't wait to see you in New York soon." 

Djokovic competed in Wimbledon, then traveled to Tokyo where he failed to medal. He lost to Germany's Alexander Zverev in the singles semifinals and then lost to Spain's Pablo Carreño Busta in the bronze medal match. He also lost in the mixed doubles semifinals and withdrew from the event's bronze medal match. 

The Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati is scheduled to start Aug. 14, and the U.S. Open will begin Aug. 30 in New York. There, Djokovic will look to claim his 21st career major title and possibly a calendar Grand Slam. He currently shares the record of 20 with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.