Novak Djokovic introduced his withdrawal from the Roland Games of the French Open resulting from a “medial meniscus tear” in his knee. The 37-year-old tennis participant penned a public assertion by way of his Instagram on Tuesday, June 4.
“I am really sad to announce that I have to withdraw from Roland Garros,” Novak wrote. “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.”
Novak added that he needs “the best of luck to the players competing this week and sincerely thank the incredible fans for all of the love and continued support.”
“See you soon. With love and gratitude, Nole,” the athlete concluded on the finish of his caption.
Novak’s announcement got here simply in the future after his victory in opposition to Francisco Cerúndolo. Although he appeared ready to tackle Francisco once more sooner or later, Novak admitted to a gaggle of reporters that his knee was in ache. According to CNN, Novak admitted the ache solely subsided towards the tip of the match after taking medicine.
“At one point, I didn’t know, to be honest, whether I should continue or not with what’s happening,” Novak advised reporters, in keeping with the outlet. He additionally identified that he began feeling “slight discomfort” in his knee earlier than the event. However, the tennis professional added that it wasn’t “an injury that would be concerning me at all.”
To make issues worse, Novak revealed that the numerous quantity of rain in Paris precipitated him to slide “way too many times,” possible aggravating the damage.
“I’ve slipped and fallen on the clay many times in my life, and on grass as well, but this was just too many times today,” Novak defined to the press. “Could this injury have been prevented? Possibly, if there was just a little bit more frequent care of the court during the set. That’s basically all I asked for.”