‘Stop blaming Novak’

Alexander Zverev defended Novak Djokovic for pulling out of their Australian Open semifinal with injury Friday after the 24time Grand Slam champion was booed by some spectators as he left courtThe 37yearold Serb retired after losing the opener 76 75 to put the German World No 2 into the Melbourne decider for the first time Some in the crowd jeered Djokovic annoyed that they didnrsquot get their moneyrsquos worth But Zverev said the nature of the injury mdash a muscle tear mdash meant playing on for two or three more hours was unrealisticLot of play time leftldquoHe knew probably to beat me after the first set he would have had to play probably at least three more hours and thatrsquos very difficult to do if you have a tear or if you have a muscle injuryrdquo he saidAlso ReadGot to go above and beyond to succeed BrookJannik Sinner returns to Ben Shelton during their semifinal in Melbourne yesterday PicAFPldquoSo I think we should stop blaming Novak Novak has done absolutely everything he could on the tennis court in the last 20 yearsrdquo he addedldquoHersquos won this tournament with an abdominal tear where most players canrsquot even continue playing Hersquos won this tournament with a hamstring tear Hersquos a 10time champion in Melbourne I think we should all just respect that in a way because therersquos nobody in this sportrsquos history who has won and who has done as much as himrdquoDjokovicrsquos pain was Zverevrsquos gain with the 27yearold handed the chance to again win a maiden Grand Slam after being runnerup at the US Open in 2020 and at Roland Garros last yearHe came into the season on a high after ending 2024 as World No 2 winning more matches than anyone bar Jannik Sinner and back to his best after a horrific ankle injuryMeanwhile Jannik Sinner played down any injury fears after suffering from cramp in his Australian Open semifinal win saying physical struggles were all part of getting through twoweeklong Grand SlamsThe World No 1 blasted past Ben Shelton admitting he was relieved to come through in straight sets Sinner suffered from leg cramps in the third set of his 76 72 62 62 win against the American 21st seed and had to have the trainer on to massage his thighs near the endCramps trouble SinnerldquoI had some tension today slightly crampsrdquo said Sinner who had dizzy spells during his match in the fourth round ldquoYou know these matches can go very very long For three sets two and a half hours is quite a time So Irsquom happy to finish today in threerdquoThe Italian said physical suffering was to be expected because it was his first tournament of the season ldquoWithout playing any tournaments before you never know whatrsquos happeningrdquo he said ldquoThen you try to raise your level daybyday All of us who go deep in tournaments have some days where they struggle a little bit morerdquoThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever