By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Novak Djokovic will no longer continue his French Open campaign after withdrawing from the Grand Slam tournament due to a knee injury confirmed on June 4, 2024.
The Serbian tennis superstar announced the shocking development on his official Instagram account, stating that his right knee had a medial meniscus tear after a brutal five-set victory over Francisco Cerundolo in the fourth round of Roland Garros.
“I am really sad to announce that I have to withdraw from Roland Garros. I played with my heart and gave my all in yesterday’s match and unfortunately, due to a medial meniscus tear in my right knee, my team and I had to make a tough decision after careful consideration and consultation,” posted Djokovic.
Seeking for his record-extending 25th Grand Slam championship, Djokovic kicked off his French Open campaign in style, sweeping his first two matches against Pierre Herbert and Roberto Baena.
As the competition got tougher when he entered the third round, Djokovic just had a draining two-game stretch against Lorenzo Mussetti and Cerundolo when he needed five full sets to take them down.
In those two games, Djokovic nearly spent 10 hours on the playing court and was visibly exhausted in those matches.
Djokovic was supposed to face Casper Ruud in the quarterfinal round of the French Open but a walkover rewarded the automatic win to the Norwegian star.
In the other bracket, Carlos Alcaraz, one of Djokovic’s rivals in the ATP, already booked a semifinal ticket after sweeping Stefanos Tsitsipas in the quarterfinals.
Alcaraz will then be challenging Jannik Sinner, also one of the biggest young stars in the sport today, in the semis that will kick off on June 7, 2024.
“I wish the best of luck to the players competing this week and sincerely thank the incredible fans for all the love and continued support,” Djokovic closed.
