Novak Djokovic hits back at critics after withdrawing from Australian Open due to injury as he shows nasty scan of his hamstring
Novak Djokovic has hit back at his critics after he withdrew from the Australian Open due to injury.
Djokovic was forced to retire after losing the first set of of his semi-final against Alexander Zverev.
That led to Djokovic, who has won the tournament a record 10 times, being booed off by some sections of the crowd in Melbourne.
Djokovic has now responded by posting a scan which demonstrates the extent of the damage to his hamstring.
Djokovic wrote on X: ‘Thought I’d leave this here for all the sports injury ‘experts’ out there.’
The 37-year-old stated that he would like to keep working with Andy Murray as his coach despite his frustrating time at the Australian Open.
Novak Djokovic has hit back at his critics after he withdrew from the Australian Open
Djokovic was left frustrated after he had to withdraw from the tournament due to injury
The 37-year-old posted a scan which showed the extent of the damage to his hamstring
Djokovic said: ‘We both were disappointed with what just happened, so we didn’t talk about the future steps. We are so fresh off the court.
‘I’ll definitely have a chat with Andy and thank him for being here with me, give him my feedback which is, of course, positive, and see how he feels and we make the next step.
‘We are still hotheaded and disappointed, so it’s kind of hard to switch the page and start talking about what the next steps are. I think we both need to cool off a little bit and then we’ll have a chat.’
Djokovic also commented on whether he could feature at the Australian Open again.
He said: ‘I don’t know. There is a chance [I won’t be back].
‘Who knows? I’ll just have to see how the season goes.
‘I want to keep going but whether I’m going to have a revised schedule or not for the next year, I’m not sure.
‘I normally like to come to Australia to play. I’ve had the biggest success in my career here.
Alexander Zverev jumped to the defence of Djokovic after his opponent was booed off
Djokovic indicated that he is eager to continue working with coach Andy Murray
‘So if I’m fit, healthy, motivated, I don’t see a reason why I wouldn’t come.’
Zverev jumped to Djokovic’s defence after his opponent was booed.
He said: ‘Please, guys — don’t boo a player when he goes out with injury.
‘I know everyone paid for tickets and everybody wants to see a great five-set match. But you have to understand for the past 20 years, Novak Djokovic has given tennis absolutely everything.
‘He has won this tournament with an abdominal tear, a hamstring tear. If he cannot continue with this match, it means he really can’t continue.’
