July 8, 2024; London, United Kingdom; Alex de Minaur (AUS) reacts after winning a match against Arthur Fils (FRA) (not pictured) in a men’s singles match on day eight of the 2024 Wimbledon Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis Club. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports Novak Djokovic has reached his record 13th Wimbledon semi-final after Australia’s Alex de Minaur withdrew with a hip injury on Wednesday.
De Minaur, who was scheduled to face Djokovic in the quarter-finals, admitted to injuring his hip in the final minutes of his 6-2, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 victory over Arthur Fils in the fourth round on Monday. After attempting to warm up for less than eight minutes earlier in the day, de Minaur informed Wimbledon officials and Djokovic’s entourage that he would not be able to recover in time to challenge Djokovic, the No. 2 seed.
“I’m devastated, but I had to withdraw because of a hip injury, a small tear in the fibrous cartilage that is at the end of the adductor,” de Minaur said. “I felt a strong crack in the last three points of my match against Fils and I had a scan yesterday and it confirmed that was the injury. (There is) a high risk that it could get worse if I were to go on court.”
With the win, Djokovic joins Roger Federer for the most semifinals by a man in tournament history. The 37-year-old will face the winner of Wednesday’s other match, No. 13 seed Taylor Fritz against No. 25 seed Lorenzo Musetti of Italy.
De Minaur, meanwhile, said he was at peace with his decision despite the possibility of beating Djokovic for the second time this year.
“It’s no secret that at this point in my career, this was the most important game of my career. So I wanted to do everything I could to play,” de Minaur said. “I got the results yesterday. I knew what the results were yesterday. I still wanted to wake up today hoping to feel some kind of miracle and not feel it when I walked around.”
“The problem with me playing is that one injury, one slip, anything, can take the recovery from that injury from three to six weeks to four months,” de Minaur said. “It’s too risky.”
–Field level media
