Djokovic returns to Basel for first time since 2011

The last time Novak Djokovic stepped onto the court at St. Jakobshalle in Basel, in 2011, Japan’s Kei Nishikori stopped him in the semifinals. Fifteen years later he is back at the tournament where he lifted the trophy in 2009, and by most accounts he accepted the organizers’ invitation at the last minute.

Djokovic will play the ATP 500 event in Basel, scheduled for October 24 to November 1, 2026. According to the Swiss paper Blick, the 39-year-old Serb received a special invitation from the organizers. Journalist Marko Peskio relayed what the player’s representatives said: “Novak’s representatives said he accepted the offer at the last minute and with great pleasure.” B92 reports the same statement slightly differently, as though Djokovic accepted “on short notice and with great pleasure,” so the meaning is clear even if Blick’s exact wording is not.

How did Djokovic get a place in Basel?

The news was confirmed yesterday, a day after Carlos Alcaraz announced he would play in Vienna instead of Basel. B92 says Djokovic is not taking one of the wildcards reserved for Swiss players but meets the requirements for a so-called A+ invitation, a special category that lets organizers add big stars even shortly before a tournament begins.

What did Djokovic leave behind in Basel from 2009 to 2011?

He played Swiss Indoors three times, in three straight seasons:

• 2009: won the title by beating Roger Federer in the final, after defeating Stan Wawrinka in the quarterfinals
• 2010: lost the final to Federer, who got his revenge in his hometown
• 2011: Kei Nishikori stopped him in the semifinals

Federer is by far the most successful player in the tournament’s history, having lifted the trophy 10 times. B92 points out that Djokovic reached at least the semifinals in each of those three appearances. The same source adds that this year he could meet Wawrinka again, who is playing in Basel as part of his farewell to tennis.

Who else is in the Basel field?

The entrants include Ben Shelton, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Taylor Fritz, Arthur Fils and defending champion Joao Fonseca. According to Sport Klub, Djokovic will be the fourth seed, behind Shelton, Auger-Aliassime and Fils.

What form is he in, and what is he chasing?

Djokovic arrives after an Asian swing that had two faces. In Beijing he won an ATP 500 event, his 102nd career title and his first ATP trophy this year, and Sport Klub notes it was his seventh Beijing trophy in as many attempts. In Shanghai he lost to Hubert Hurkacz in the second round of the Masters, in the first match he played, since he had a bye in the first round.

Sport Klub lists him as the world number eight in the ATP rankings. In the race for the year-end finals in Turin, according to the same source, he is tenth, and the Spaniard in eighth place leads by 69 points. That text describes Shanghai as an upcoming event, so the figures should be read as the situation at the time it was written, not as today’s.

French coach Patrick Mouratoglou explains why he is coming back now:

“I still think Novak’s main problem is a lack of rhythm and preparation. When he is ready and motivated, his level is still incredible. Tennis still matters to him, but he needs something to motivate him. That is chasing records, he needs something big. Playing at the ATP Finals at 39 is the next step to keep that inner fire burning.”

Mouratoglou sees the motivation to play the year-end finals in Turin as the main reason behind Djokovic’s return to Basel.

What happened to Riyadh?

The week in which Basel begins had also been reserved for the Six Kings Slam exhibition in Riyadh, scheduled for October 21 to 24. Organizers postponed it after an attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebel group on Saudi Arabia. We reported earlier on the new date, December 27.

The Basel tournament starts on October 24. Djokovic will play at St. Jakobshalle for the first time in fifteen years, and he last lifted the trophy there seventeen years ago.