Novak Djokovic slams haters by sharing MRI scan of his injury after shock Australian Open retirement

Serbian tennis legend Novak Djokovic has hit back at doubters who trolled him for ‘faking his injury’ following shock retirement from the Australian Open 2025 on Friday, January 25. The 37-year-old withdrew from the semifinal clash against Alexander Zverev after losing the opening set due to injury on his left hamstring. 

Djokovic entered the Rod Laver Arena with his left hamstring heavily tapped-on, indicating that the injury he sustained during the quarterfinal clash against Carlos Alcaraz seemed to have worsened. Throughout the first set, the 10-time Australian Open champion didn’t show any sign of discomfort as he put on a tough fight against Alexander Zverev, with the German star edging out the Serbian legend in a tense tiebreak, winning 7-6. 

Also read: 'Just disgusting': Navratilova slams Australian Open crowd for booing at Djokovic after his shock retirement

However, before the beginning of the second set, Novak Djokovic decided to withdraw from the match, leaving the spectators at the Rod Laver Arena completely shocked. Djokovic had a word with Alexander Zverev and explained to him about his injury before shaking hands with the on-chair umpire to officially retire hurt from the semifinal clash. When Djokovic was walking out of the stadium, some of the section of the crowd started booing the Serbian tennis legend as they believe that he left the match due to continuous booing. 

In order to settle the matter, Novak Djokovic shared the image of an MRI scan of his injury on X handle (formerly Twitter) which confirmed a tear on his left hamstring and wrote, “Thought I’d leave this here for all the sports injury “experts” out there.” 

Alexander Zverev and former tennis player Martina Navratilova slammed the section of the Melbourne crowd for their disrespectful behaviour towards Novak Djokovic when he was leaving the Rod Laver Arena due to injury. 

With his sudden retirement from the Australian Open 2025, Novak Djokovic’s quest for his unprecedented 11th Australian Open triumph and the record-breaking 25th Grand Slam title came to an abrupt end. Novak Djokovic was unsure whether he would be able to play the semifinal against Alexander Zverev as he didn’t turn up for two practice sessions due to leg injury. The 37-year-old’s availability for the semifinal was confirmed just 90 minutes before the match. 

This was not the first time Novak Djokovic retired in the middle of the match. Last year at the French Open, the 37-year-old withdrew before the quarterfinals match against Casper Ruud due to knee injury. At the 2023 Australian Open, Djokovic had an abdominal tear, but he still went on to clinch his record 10th title at the Melbourne Park. 

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