Novak Djokovic may have played last Madrid Open as Serb addresses 'too many' early exits

has confessed that he may have already played the Madrid Open for the final time after . The world No. 5 has now lost in the opening round in four of his last five tournaments, a far cry from the days of dominance when he would go on 40-plus-match winning streaks.

Following his 6-3 6-4 loss, Djokovic admitted there had been "way too many" early exits in the last year and admitted he was in uncharted territory. But the 37-year-old is trying to embrace and accept his new circumstances.

Djokovic had not competed in the Madrid Open since 2022, and this was just his second appearance at the tournament since 2019. But it didn't last long, as he suffered a straight-set defeat to Arnaldi on Saturday.

The three-time former champion in Madrid stopped to wave to the Manolo Santana Stadium crowd before walking off the court, and he has now admitted that this could have been his last match at the Caja Magica.

"It could be. It could be. I'm not sure if I will come back. So, I don't know, I don't know what to say," Djokovic said when asked if he'd played here for the final time.

"I mean, I'll come back, maybe not as a player, of course. I hope it's not, but it could be."

It's been a challenging start to the season for Djokovic, who is now on a three-match losing streak for the second time in 2025. There have been some highlights - he reached the Australian Open semi-final and finished runner-up in Miami.

Otherwise, Djokovic is coming to terms with the reality of losing early at most of the events he plays.

He continued: "You can imagine, I mean, [in the last] 20 years, I didn't experience what I'm experiencing in the last 12 months. So, you know, early exits and, you know, way too many.

"But it is part of the sport, and you have to accept the circumstances and try to make the best out of the circumstances in your favour for whatever is coming up.

"Look, I cannot sit here and complain about my career or anything, I'm not doing that. But it's a different feeling that I just have to embrace, accept, and deal with in a special way."

Djokovic will turn 38 next month, in search of a historic 25th Grand Slam title. For now, he's still happy to compete.

"I'm always trying to be optimistic, and I know what I'm capable of. But again, things are different, obviously, with my strokes, with my body, with my movement, it's the reality that I have to accept," he explained.

"I'll try to make the most out of these new circumstances that I have, particularly on Grand Slams, where it counts the most for me, at least where I would like to do my best. So let's see what happens.

"Pressure is part of the sport and part of what we do on this highest level, so it's never going to go away, you know, it's just different kind of pressure.

"But every time I step on the court I feel the nerves, I feel stress, I feel everything that I guess all the other players feel, and excitement as well. So, [I] still like to compete, it became a bit more challenging for me, to be honest."