Novak Djokovic certainly wouldn’t have deserved to be booed by the Australian crowd when he walked out of the Rod Laver Arena. The former world No. 1 retired at the end of the first set of the 2025 Australian Open semifinal against Alexander Zverev, having felt that the pain in his adductors was getting too severe and that he would not have had it without continuing.
The Serbian legend did not want to affect his season and had not trained in the two days before the match against the German champion. The 24-time Grand Slam champion has done everything he can to recover and his team has been very supportive of him, especially Andy Murray, who has made a remarkable impact and has been thanked several times by Nole himself.
The current world number 7 certainly needed new motivation after last year’s disappointing results and the former Scottish champion was very useful to him in some situations. The 3-time Grand Slam champion has taken this job with the utmost seriousness and – barring shocking surprises – will continue to help his former rival as the season continues.
Corretja on Nole Djokovic
The treatment reserved for Novak by Australian fans has generated a lot of discussions on social media and among former players. Speaking on Eurosport, former world number 2 Alex Corretja defended the Serbian ace but added a small clarification.
“The boos received by Djokovic are unacceptable and unacceptable,” said the Spaniard. “However – considering that it was a Grand Slam semi-final for which tickets are very expensive – a short speech in which of 30 seconds would have allowed fans to understand the situation better. Nole retired because he was in too much pain, so he deserves respect,” added Corretja.
Los pitos a Novak son INACEPTABLES e INADMISIBLES, pero estando en semis, y yéndose de un punto al otro, a lo mejor una explicación de 30 seg haría que la gente en pista entendiera mejor la situación! Es OBVIO que se va porque no puede más, no porque le apetece! Respeto a Nole ✋🏻 https://t.co/KMcKMqh5rf
— Alex Corretja (@alexcorretja74) January 24, 2025
The 24-time Grand Slam champion won the best match of the tournament so far, the quarterfinal against Carlitos Alcaraz. Through that feat, the 37-year-old from Belgrade proved to the world that he can still compete at the highest level.
Tennis World USA