Melbourne, January 24:
Novak Djokovic was forced to retire from his Australian Open semifinal match against Alexander Zverev on Friday due to a torn muscle in his left leg. Djokovic had dropped the first set 7-6 (5) in a tiebreaker and made the decision to walk around the net and concede the match.
The crowd reacted with boos as Djokovic made his way off the court, but he responded with a two-thumbs-up gesture.
Following the match, Djokovic spoke at a news conference, sharing that the pain in his leg, which he had sustained during his quarterfinal win over Carlos Alcaraz on Tuesday, had become progressively worse. “It was getting worse and worse,” Djokovic explained. “Even if I had won the first set, I knew it was going to be a massive challenge moving forward.”
The 11-time Australian Open champion was aiming for a record 25th Grand Slam title, but the injury ended his run. This setback follows a similar injury last year, when he withdrew from the French Open before the quarterfinals due to a torn meniscus in his right knee.
The opening set of the match, which lasted 1 hour and 20 minutes, was an intense battle featuring 19 points lasting over nine strokes. The first four games alone stretched on for 31 minutes.
Despite the physical discomfort, Djokovic played with his left thigh taped, a reminder of the injury he had sustained during his previous match against Alcaraz.
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