The crowd in Melbourne, Australia, was not kind to Novak Djokovic early Friday morning.
In his quest to extend his record with a 25th Grand Slam, Djokovic managed to play just one set, withdrawing from his Australian Open semi-final after tearing a muscle in his leg LEFT.
The withdrawal sent Alexander Zverev into Sunday’s final against Jannick Sinner, and left the crowd disappointed.
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Serbia’s Novak Djokovic packs his bags after withdrawing from his men’s singles semi-final against Germany’s Alexander Zverev on day 13 of the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne on January 24, 2025. (WILLIAM WEST/AFP via Getty Images)
After conceding the match to Zverev, who won the set, fans booed him as he headed to the locker room.
Djokovic stopped, turned around and responded with a thumbs up.
Zverev made his disappointment known to the crowd.
“Don’t boo a player when he comes out injured. I know everyone has paid for their tickets and everyone wants to see a great five-set match, but you have to understand that Novak Djokovic is someone who gave this sport for the last 20 years absolutely everything of his life,” Zverev said during his on-court interview.
Novak Djokovic of Serbia walks out after his match against Alexander Zverev of Germany in the men’s singles semi-final at the 2025 Australian Open at Melbourne Park. (Mike Frey-Imagn Images)
“He won this tournament with a torn abdomen. He won this tournament with a torn hamstring. If he can’t continue a tennis match, that really means he can’t continue a tennis match . So be respectful.”
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John McEnroe added on the call: “They can’t boo him. Please! He’s won 10 times, for God’s sake. Unreal…
“I mean, clearly something was going on. This guy is a fighter. I mean, him and Rafa. [Nadal] I dug deeper than two players I saw. So to do this because he decided he couldn’t continue after what he did here, I found it absolutely ridiculous, honestly. It was almost as depressing as seeing the end of the match. »
Djokovic suffered the injury during his five-set classic with Carlos Alcaraz in the quarterfinals, but he said the pain was getting “worse and worse.”
“Toward the end of that first set, I started to feel more and more pain, and it was too much for me to handle at the moment. So, yeah, an unhappy ending, but I tried.” , said Djokovic.
“I knew that even if I won the first set, it was going to be a tough battle for me.”
He withdrew from last year’s French Open before the quarterfinals after tearing the meniscus in his right knee during a match.
Djokovic had surgery a few days later and immediately reached the final of the next major tournament, Wimbledon, then won a gold medal for Serbia at the Paris Olympics.
Serbia’s Novak Djokovic reacts to a point against Germany’s Alexander Zverev during their men’s singles semi-final on the 13th day of the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne on January 24, 2025. (WILLIAM WEST/AFP via Getty Images)
This will be Zverev’s first Australian Open final and the third final of his career. He also reached the French Open final last year as well as the 2020 US Open.
