Novak Djokovic has retired from his Australian Open semifinal against Alexander Zverev due to a muscle tear he sustained earlier in the tournament.
Zverev had won the opening set in a tiebreak on Rod Laver Arena when Djokovic made the decision to withdraw after an hour and 21 minutes on court.
He picked up the left upper-leg injury during his quarterfinal win over Carlos Alcaraz on Tuesday night.
“I did everything I possibly could to manage the muscle tear I had,” Djokovic told his media conference soon after leaving the court.
Djokovic added: “[It was] An unfortunate ending, but I tried.”
As he left the court acknowledging the spectators inside Rod Laver Arena, there were sections of the crowd who booed the Serbian.
The 10-time Australian Open champion said he had not hit a ball following his four-set win over Alcaraz until an hour or so before his match against Zverev.
Djokovic had undergone treatment since Tuesday night and wore strapping on his left thigh in the semifinal.
“Towards the end of that first set I just started feeling more and more pain,” Djokovic said.
“It was too much, I guess, to handle for me at the moment.”
Djokovic (left) was embraced by Alexander Zverev after he made the decision to retire. (AP: Asanka Brendon Ratnayake)
Djokovic said he was unsure if he would have tried to continue the match had he won the first set against Zverev.
“If I won the first set, maybe I would try a few more games, half a set, maybe a set,” he said.
“I don’t know. It was getting worse and worse.
“I knew even if I won the first set, that it’s going to be a huge uphill battle for me to stay physically fit enough to stay with him in the rally for another … two, three, four hours.
“I don’t think I had that, unfortunately, today in the tank.”
Djokovic admitted the pain got worse as the forst set wore on. (Reuters: Tingshu Wang)
Djokovic, who turns 38 in May, said it was too early to make a call on whether this would be his final Australian Open.
“I don’t know. There is a chance. Who knows?” the 24-time major winner said.
“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. So if I’m fit, healthy, motivated, I don’t see a reason why I wouldn’t come.
“But there’s always a chance.”
Djokovic said he had not fully recovered from a muscle tear sustained in his quarterfinal. (Getty Images: Quinn Rooney)
Djokovic, who was seeded seventh in Melbourne, said he would consult his team before making a decision on when he would return to the court.
“I have to examine more this injury.” he said.
“When I go back home now to Europe, I will get together with the medical team and my physios and try to understand what we can do and the quickest way to recover and get back on track.
“I still have Doha tournament in few weeks’ time that is scheduled. Whether I’m going to play it or not, it really does depend on how quickly I recover.
“But I had success with quick recoveries in the past. Let’s see.
“It just depends on the muscle and how it responds to the treatment.”
Zverev said it was unfair for spectators to boo Djokovic, given what he has achieved during his career.
“At some point there’s a limit … on how much you can take,” Zverev said.
“So I think we should stop blaming Novak. Novak has done absolutely everything he could on the tennis court in the last 20 years.”
Zverev is through to his third major final and his first at Melbourne Park.
The second seed will face either defending champion Jannik Sinner or Ben Shelton in Sunday night’s final.
