New Delhi: Novak Djokovic has taken a jibe at those who questioned his decision to retire midway into his Australian Open semi-final with a muscle injury. The 10-time Australian Open champion was booed off the Rod Laver Arena when he quit one set onto his last four stage clash with Alexander Zverev.
He had justified his decision to pull out from the match citing a torn muscle. Twenty four hours after being criticised for the manner of his abrupt retirement from the match, the 24-time Grand Slam champion poste a picture of his scan of his injured left hamstring on his X account.
“Thought I’d leave this here for all the sports injury ‘experts’ out there,” Djokovic wrote, though he didn’t divulge the extent of his injury, it’s diagnosis or timeline of recovery.
Djokovic lost the opening set in a tie-breaker against Zverev and immediately shook hands with him and the chair umpire, leaving the court quickly after collecting his equipments.
As the 37-year-old walked towards the locker room, some spectators jeered him as he put his thumbs up before disappearing in the tunnel.
Zverev lends support
His opponent Zverev backed Djokovic during his on-court interview, insisting that spectators shouldn’t question his integrity, requesting them not to boo.
“I know that everybody paid for tickets and everybody wants to see hopefully a great five-set match,” Zverev said.
“But you’ve got to understand — Novak Djokovic is somebody that has given this sport, for the past 20 years, absolutely everything of his life.”
Thought I’d leave this here for all the sports injury “experts” out there. pic.twitter.com/ZO5mBtw9zB
— Novak Djokovic (@DjokerNole) January 25, 2025
Djokovic had apparently picked up the injury during his four-set win over Carlos Alcaraz in the quarter-finals.
He injured himself on the first set and took a medical timeout to tape his upper left leg, which he also sported while playing against Zverev.
“I did everything I possibly can to basically manage the muscle tear that I had,” Djokovic later said at his press conference.
“Towards the end of that first set, I just started feeling more and more pain. It was too much, I guess, to handle for me at the moment. Unfortunate ending, but I tried.”
Novak Djokovic was booed off the Rod Laver Arena when he quit one set onto his Australian Open semi-final clash against Alexander Zverev Tennis Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
