ABU DHABI • After 16 Grand Slam titles, Novak Djokovic's main source of motivation at this stage of his career is about leaving a lasting legacy rather than just lifting trophies.
From 2016 to 2018, the 32-year-old Serb had admittedly struggled with motivation after pulling off the historic feat of winning four Grand Slams in a row - a first in men's tennis since 1969.
He has since recaptured his spark, adding a quartet of Slams to his overall tally.
While the world No. 2 remains in a tight battle with Rafael Nadal (19) and Roger Federer (20) in the race for the most career Slams won, he believes that what currently drives him in the sport is something deeper than that.
"You need to constantly give yourself fuel from the source, whatever the source is," Djokovic said after his 7-5, 6-3 win over Russian Karen Khachanov on Saturday night, sealing third place at the Mubadala tennis championship.
"It's always about finding that purpose, and the reason, the meaning of actually playing.
"For me, especially in the last couple of years, it's not only about winning a tennis match or a trophy.
"It had to be something greater than my own achievements. Something that would be related to legacy, something that would really be inspiring the lives of others, particularly kids."
Asked about the possibility of surpassing Federer's record of 20 Slams, Djokovic said: "That's a goal.
"I'm motivated by breaking my own records and moving my own boundaries and that's something that motivates me to compete.
"I do love to play tennis so I do like to be on the practice court. But competitive tennis is different.
"In order to compete to be a professional tennis player and to compete at the highest level, you really need goals - daily goals, monthly goals, yearly goals.
"So I do have them, as everyone else (does). Of course, I'm aware of the privilege I have to fight for history and to be able to possibly achieve even greater things, and that's something that drives me, of course, alongside other things."
While the Mubadala championship is an exhibition tournament, it remains vital for his pre-season preparations ahead of the Australian Open, with the first Grand Slam of the year less than four weeks away.
He will kick off the new year by representing Serbia in the inaugural ATP Cup in Australia early next month, while Rafael Nadal will spearhead the Spanish contingent.
World No. 1 Nadal won the Mubadala tournament for a record fifth time following a 6-7 (7-3), 7-5, 7-6 (7-3) victory over Stefanos Tsitsipas later on Saturday.
The Spaniard was quoted on tennis.com as saying: "The fifth title here means a lot to me, so I'm very happy to finish the 2019 season this way."
He also paid tribute to his opponent, saying: "Playing against Stefanos is always a big challenge for me - he's young and he has a lot of energy. So all the best to Stefanos for the 2020 season."
Tsitsipas said of the 3hr 12min encounter: "I think it was high quality tennis today, and hopefully great entertainment for the people to watch.
"I've never played an exhibition so long. I've probably never even played a match so long. It was a tough loss today, but I gave it my all out there, so I'm happy. We got electric support by all the fans."
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
