Novak Djokovic has sent a message of wishing his stricken Wimbledon opponent Alex de Minaur a “speedy recovery” after the Australian was forced to pull out of their clash. De Minaur had made it to the quarter-finals to face the seven-time champion but was unable to shake off an injury, giving the Serbian star a welcome walkover to the semi-finals at SW19.
De Minaur admitted he was “devastated” to withdraw from the tournament after being left unable to play due to a persistent hip injury, with the 25-year-old limping in the aftermath of his victory over Arthur Fils in the round of 16.
And Djokovic, who will face Lorenzo Musetti on Friday for a place in Sunday’s final, sent a classy message of support to the No. 9 seed as he bids to recover from his injury.
“I’m excited to be in another semi-finals. Obviously [De Minaur’s injury is] not great for the tournament,” Djokovic told The Tennis Channel. “It’s never great to go through with a withdrawal of a player. I wish Alex the best in terms of recovery. I hope he can come back to the court.
Djokovic gave an insight to his meticulous preparation as he revealed he was watching De Minaur’s match when he suffered the injury and the 36-year-old – who pulled out of the French Open with a knee injury in June – said he sympathised with his fellow pro.
We saw that in the last point actually he injured himself. I was watching the replay of that point of his last match to try and understand where he injured himself,” Djokovic added.
“Some people were guessing whether it was an ankle, or hip or knee. I think in the end it was a hip. It’s terrible. The biggest enemy of an athlete is injury. I wish him a speedy recovery.
“He was playing in red-hot form. It would’ve been a really tough match for both of us if we were playing today but it is what it is. I’m moving on to the semis.
Djokovic will be playing in his 13th Wimbledon semi-final at the All England Club, equalling Roger Federer’s record at SW19, and extended his incredible achievement of making the last four in 49 Grand Slams.
The world No. 2 dispatched of Holger Rune in straight sets in his last match and will no doubt be feeling fresh ahead of his tie against Musetti.
The Italian battled past the American Taylor Fritz in five sets on Wednesday to make the semi-finals for the first time in his career, although he will be put at a slight disadvantage given Djokovic played on Monday – giving him two days of extra rest and time on the practice courts.
