Novak Djokovic set off alarm bells ahead of his Australian Open semifinal match against Alexander Zverev at Rod Laver Arena on Friday. The Serb skipped training for the second day in a row since his quarterfinal win against Carlos Alcaraz. He did not train on Wednesday and reportedly spent his time with his physiotherapist.
Djokovic suffered from an injury during the match against Alcaraz on Tuesday. At 4-5 down in the opening set, he had left the court, taking a medical timeout and returned with a heavily strapped upper left thigh. He did bounce back in the match after losing the first set, with the painkillers kicking in as he beat the Spaniard 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4.
According to a report in Marca, he skipped his training on Thursday, which was scheduled for the afternoon and spent his time in recovery, with his physiotherapist Miljan Amanovic. It is yet to be seen if Djokovic will recover in time for the match against Zverev.
Notably, the 37-year-old had suffered an injury during the 2023 edition of the tournament. He had claimed to have had a 3cm tear in his left hamstring and wore a heavy strapping in every match en route to his win against Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final to claim his 10th Australian Open title.
"When I went into my box, I just think emotionally collapsed there and teared up with especially my mother and my brother when I gave them a hug, because up to that moment I was not allowing myself to, I guess, be distracted with things off the court or whatever was happening in dealing with an injury, things happening off the court, as well, that could easily have been a big disturbance to my focus and to my game," Djokovic said.
{{/usCountry}}"When I went into my box, I just think emotionally collapsed there and teared up with especially my mother and my brother when I gave them a hug, because up to that moment I was not allowing myself to, I guess, be distracted with things off the court or whatever was happening in dealing with an injury, things happening off the court, as well, that could easily have been a big disturbance to my focus and to my game," Djokovic said.
{{/usCountry}}"It required an enormous mental energy really to stay present, to stay focused, to take things day by day, and really see how far I can go. Yeah, was a huge relief and release of the emotions in the end. Just difficult to find any additional words really. It's been a long journey, but very special one."
Djokovic now stands two wins away from an unprecedented 25th major in his career and a record-extending 11th trophy in Melbourne.