Novak Djokovic’s Australian Open hopes were shattered when he retired from his semifinal match against Alexander Zverev due to a muscle tear in his left leg. The crowd’s ominous reception, marked by boos, was met with defiance as Djokovic flashed two thumbs up before exiting the court.
Djokovic’s Australian Open Hopes Shattered by Injury
Twenty-four-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic retired from his Australian Open semifinal match against Alexander Zverev on Friday afternoon, unable to continue due to a muscle tear in his left leg.
The capacity Rod Laver Arena crowd booed Djokovic as he headed for the exit, but he responded by flashing two thumbs up. Despite his efforts to manage the injury through medication and physio work, Djokovic admitted that he was unable to continue with the match.
“I did everything I possibly can to manage the muscle tear that I had,” Djokovic told reporters minutes after stepping off the court. “Medications and the strap and the physio work helped to some extent today, [but] towards the end of that first set I just started feeling more and more pain. It was getting worse and worse. It was just too much to handle for me at the moment.”
Zverev, who will play in his first Australian Open final against defending champion Jannik Sinner, addressed the booing fans and defended Djokovic in his on-court interview. “The very first thing I want to say is, please, guys, don’t boo a player when he goes out with injury,” Zverev said. “I know that everybody paid for tickets and wants to see hopefully a five-set match. He has won this tournament with an abdominal tear, won this tournament with a hamstring injury. So please show some respect.”
This is the second time in the past 12 months that Djokovic has been forced out of a Grand Slam through injury. At last year’s French Open, he withdrew from his quarterfinal against Casper Ruud with a knee issue.
Djokovic will now have the injury investigated further to determine how long he will be sidelined. “When I go back home to Europe I will get together with the medical team and my physios and try to understand what we can do and the quickest way to recover and get back on track,” he said.
