Djokovic quits practice due to a hamstring issue
The nine-time Australian Open winner scared fans days ahead of the first major of the calendar after training for some minutes.
A tense moment among tennis fans was lived during one of Novak Djokovic’s training sessions, which included a practice game with Daniil Medvedev.
The 21-time major winner suffered an injury scare only five days before the start of the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam tournament of the year.
‘Nole’ required treatment on his hamstring during three changeovers and called it quits after 36 minutes of the game. He was leading Medvedev 3-2 with a break but ended up losing the set 6-4 after his first signs of injury.
Djokovic, who has recently won the Adelaide International 1 trophy, admitted he had been having issues in that area while he was playing in the tournament.
“It’s the hamstring that I had problems with in Adelaide last week against Medvedev when we played semifinals”, he told 9 News.
Djokovic’s vs. time before the Australian Open
The Serb star, who will be looking to tie Rafael Nadal as the player with the most majors won ever (22), will now have to hope to fully recover before the start of the Australian Open, which will be held from the 16th to the 31st of January.
“I just felt it pulling and I didn’t want to risk anything worse. I played a set and apologized to him [Medvedev] and he was understanding”, he admitted.
Djokovic, who added that he wanted to avoid any bigger scares before the Australian Open, was replaced by Spaniard Pablo Andújar to resume the unusual practice match with Medvedev.
The 35-year-old will be chasing glory in his favorite major after not being able to play in Melbourne last year. The player was deported on the eve of the Australian Open for not being Covid19 vaccinated.