World No. 1 tennis player, Novak Djokovic will not be playing his quarterfinal match against Casper Ruud at Roland Garros because of a knee injury suffered in the last round.
Djokovic defeated Francisco Cerundolo 6-1, 5-7, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 in a grueling fourth-round match on Monday. The match lasted four hours and 39 minutes, just 37 hours after his intense third-round match against Lorenzo Musetti, which also went four hours and 29 minutes.
During his match with Cerundolo, Djokovic twisted his knee while changing direction and needed multiple treatments. He had previously complained about the court conditions during his third-round match against Musetti, and his protests continued before and after his knee injury.
“Today I injured myself. I survived. I won the match. Great. But will I be able to play the next one? I don’t know,” Djokovic said after his win on Monday. “I don’t know the severity of the injury. But could this injury have been prevented? Possibly, if there was just a little bit more frequent care of the court during the set.”
The 37-year-old described how he managed to finish Monday’s match. “At one point, I didn’t know whether I should continue or not. I got the medications, and after the third set, I asked for more medications and got them,” Djokovic explained. “The whole fifth set was almost without any pain, which is great. But the effect of the medications will not last for too long, so I’ll see. We’ll do some more screening and tests and check-ups tomorrow, as well.”
Following an MRI on Tuesday, the results confirmed the need for Djokovic’s withdrawal from the tournament.
Djokovic, who was aiming for his first title of 2024 and a 25th Grand Slam, now faces uncertainty about his fitness for Wimbledon in July and the Paris Olympics.
