Novak Djokovic has dream dashed by fans in build-up to French Open

has made it no secret that his main focus is on the Grand Slam tournaments as he enters the latter years of his career. After a "horrible" , he admitted his was the French Open. He doubled down on his comments after arriving in Madrid for the Masters 1000 event.

However, Djokovic has already been handed a brutal reality check with the French Open still a few weeks away. The world No. 5 has 24 Major titles to his name, but it's been more than 18 months since his last victory. And fans believe the drought will continue at Roland Garros.

Djokovic has remained clear about his goals on the clay. "Roland Garros. That's it," he said with a smile after losing his opening match at the Monte-Carlo Masters earlier this month.

The 37-year-old kept his eyes on the prize at the Madrid Open. Ahead of the tournament, he told Sky Sports he wanted to "peak at the French Open."

But Express Sport readers aren't convinced, as a staggering 82 per cent claimed Djokovic would not achieve his goal of winning the French Open this year.

While Djokovic has made it clear that the French Open is his goal, he also agrees that he this year, though he hopes it can work in his favour.

After on Saturday, he said: "I'm not going into Roland Garros as one of the main favourites. Maybe that can help, I don't know, we'll see."

The world No. 5 has three Roland Garros trophies under his belt, coming out on top in 2016, 2021 and 2023. His title defence ended abruptly last year when he picked up a knee injury and pulled out ahead of the quarter-final to undergo surgery.

Djokovic is also hunting two huge milestones - his 25th Major and his 100th career title - and could kill two birds with one stone in Paris.

"If you tell me I'll win a 100th title in any of the Slams this year, I'll sign right away, no problem," he said earlier this month. "But it's a big mountain to climb, so I've got to be a bit more humble about it and hope for the best."

There's also the question of Djokovic's age. He will turn 38 next month, before the French Open begins, and it will be a big ask for his body to hold up over seven best-of-five-set matches.

He already had trouble at the Australian Open earlier this year, injuring his thigh during his quarter-final victory against Carlos Alcaraz. After winning in four sets, he admitted he considered retiring during the match.

Djokovic did everything possible to be ready for the semis against Alexander Zverev but had to retire after losing the first set in a tiebreak. He subsequently pulled out of Serbia's Davis Cup tie.

But the Serb will be full of confidence when he returns to Stade Roland Garros next month, as he is on a six-match winning streak at the venue.

After a sad end to the French Open, Djokovic returned to the Parisian clay for the 2024 Olympic Games and won a gold medal for the first time in his career, and he will hope to pick up where he left off.