Ahead Of Monte Carlo, World No. 1 Novak Djokovic Says ‘Roland Garros Is The Ultimate Goal On Clay’

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic hasn’t played since being upset by Jiri Vesley on Feb. 24 in Dubai, but he returns to the court his week in Monte Carlo with the ultimate goal of defending his Roland Garros title later this spring.

Djokovic, 34, was unable to play the Australian Open in January because he was deported ahead of the tournament due to being unvaccinated against Covid-19, and was also unable to play the “Sunshine Swing” in Indian Wells and Miami last month.

“I am testing my engine, so to say, and building my game, so it will take obviously some time, some matches to really get in the groove and find the competitive play that I really need,” he said Sunday in Monte Carlo. “Roland Garros is the ultimate goal in clay court season.”

The French Open runs May 22-June 5.

Djokovic will open play Tuesday in Monte Carlo against Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and could meet Spanish teenage sensation Carlos Alcaraz — who won his first Masters 1000 title at Miami last week — in what would be a highly anticipated quarterfinal.

“It would be amazing to play against him, it would be a great challenge for me,” Alcaraz said in Monte Carlo.

“I still feel motivated to be on the Tour and compete with young guys and try to challenge the best players in the world for the biggest titles,” said Djokovic, who has twice won Monte Carlo.

“I’m very pleased to be here and Monaco has been home for over ten years. I have been eagerly waiting for the moment when I will be out competing again, so this is the best place where I could possibly start.”

Djokovic arrives in Monte Carlo having reclaimed his world No. 1 ranking on March 21 after a three-week stint by Russian Daniil Medvedev.

Djokovic continues to absorb criticism for missing the Australian Open and the “Sunshine Swing” due to being unvaccinated. Now with vaccination standards relaxing worldwide, he is cleared to play the French Open.

“I don’t know what the reason is, but if you’re trying to be the best in history and you’re going to give up the race for some vaccines, you have to be the king of stupidity,” former world No. 1 Marcelo Rios said of Djokovic. “I believe that at first it was out of fear, but now he is being too arrogant.”

Djokovic knows he will likely have to deal with some boos and some negative reactions from fans as he returns to the court. He will also have to deal with his own pent up emotions having not played for nearly two months.

“Once I start playing matches, then I will have to deal with everything that probably has been dormant inside and is maybe waiting to come out,” he said. “I’m trying to deal with it on a daily basis or weekly basis. If something surfaces, I acknowledge it and move on.”

With Australian Open champion and 21-time Grand Slam winner Rafael Nadal sidelined for the start of the clay court season with a rib injury, former world No. 1 Mats Wilander believes Djokovic will be the favorite going into Roland Garros.

“Now that Rafael Nadal is maybe not going to have the perfect preparation, Djokovic suddenly becomes the favorite,” Wilander said last month.

“But he most probably needs a little bit of confidence in some of the tournaments that leads up to the French.

“But that’s great news because we don’t want to see the rat race end with Rafa Nadal having a fractured rib, with Roger Federer having surgeries on his body and with Djokovic not being able to play tennis because of vaccination issues when it comes to Covid-19.

“So hopefully we can get all three of them back healthy in the right state of mind. And just for one tournament, I’d like to see the three of them play again. That’s going to be the biggest tournament of all time in the history of professional tennis.”