Novak Djokovic pulled out of the Australian Open semi-finals against Alexander Zverev after complaining of an injury. The match was tightly contested as Djokovic was in the lead for the majority of the time in the first set before Zverev launched a counterattack. 

The German eventually won the set 7-6 (7-5) on Rod Laver Arena before Djokovic pulled out of the competition. With that, Zverev advanced to the final of the 2025 Australian Open final, slated to take place on Sunday, January 26.

The Serbian complained of a leg injury in the quarter-final against Carlos Alcaraz but managed to recover and went on to win the contest despite being a set down. He took a medical timeout after the opening set, which also invited criticism as many tennis legends called it one of Djokovic’s strategies. Meanwhile, after the match, the 37-year-old confirmed that had he not won the second set, he would have pulled out.

The 10-time Australian Open winner also skipped his training session on Thursday to avoid any further injuries. He arrived to the semi-final with his leg taped up but managed to dominate early on before throwing his towel. Meanwhile, Zverev qualified for his maiden final at Melbourne Park. He will play the winner of Jannik Sinner and Ben Shelton in the summit clash.

Interestingly, Djokovic was heavily booed after he informed about pulling out of the competition. In his on-court interview, Zverev urged the crowd to not boo a player when he’s out with an injury and reminded them that the 24-time Grand Slam winner has played with abdomina and hamstring injury previously and that he is very committed to the game.

“The very first thing I want to say is please don’t boo when a player is injured. I know everyone paid for tickets but Novak Djokovic is someone who has given everything to the sport. He has won this title with an abdominal injury, he has won this title with a hamstring injury. If he cannot continue a tennis match, he really cannot continue a tennis match,” Zverez said.

Source: India TV
--Agencies