Australian Open Rumor: Novak Djokovic’s Fitness Sparks Concern Ahead of Crucial Clash Against Alexander Zverev

“I’m concerned. I am, to be honest, physically,” 24-time Major winner Novak Djokovic said after pulling one of his greatest career victories against Carlos Alcaraz on Tuesday. But now there’s a fear lurking in his mind. Of losing? Of course not. It’s about failing to even step on the court, on Friday, in the 2025 Australian Open SF battle against World No.2 Alexander Zverev. A major hamstring injury, sustained during the QF encounter against the Spaniard, is worrying the 10-time AO king. So much so that he had to skip the practice session! Will Djoker head into the clash without training?

After skipping training on Wednesday, Djokovic cancelled his practice session on Thursday, a day before the anticipated clash with Zverev. For the unversed, the former World No.1 had to take an MTO (medical time-out) in the QF to stay afloat. He wasn’t able to move properly due to strong pain in his leg, in the first set when he was down 4-5. With the help of painkillers, he was able to edge past the 21-year-old four-time major champion. Speaking of his practice, he’s now expected to do it right before the semifinal on Friday.

After Tuesday’s encounter, he looked quite worried regarding his injury woes and said, “I have to assess the situation tomorrow when I wake up,” as reported by Tennis.com on January 22nd. Giving an overview of what he may do for a solution, he added, “I will try to do as much as I possibly can with my recovery team, with my physio, today, tomorrow, the next few days.”

Further, he also mentioned that in this edition of the major, he was “pleased with the way I was able to play throughout the entire tournament, including against one of the best players, one of the two or three best players in the word in the last three, four years.” Describing his hard-fought win over Alcaraz, he said, “It’s just a great win. I’m very proud of it.”

While the 37-year-old might be going through a physical challenge, this situation is nearly identical to his 2023 Australian Open campaign. Remember what he did two years ago in Melbourne after defying a major injury?

When Novak Djokovic overcame a fatal injury to win 22nd Grand Slam down under

Twice this decade, Novak Djokovic has triumphed at the Australian Open despite battling a mysterious ailment. In 2021, he disclosed that an abdominal tear had plagued him throughout the tournament. In 2021, Djokovic defeated Zverev in a four-set quarterfinal at the Australian Open. Two years later, he had sustained a serious hamstring injury during the 2023 edition of the major down under. And guess what?

Even in that event, he had skipped his practice session a day before the semifinal against Tommy Paul. Throughout the tournament, he was seen playing with heavy strapping on his left leg. Still, he not only beat Paul, with a final score line of 7-5, 6-1, 6-2, but also made it to the title clash.

In the final, against Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas, Djokovic, then 35, played one of the greatest Slam matches of his career. Despite crunching moments where Tsitsipas challenged him, the Serbian emerged as the last man standing. After a battle that lasted nearly three hours, the scorecard read 6-3, 7-6(4), 7-6(5) in favor of Djoker. He succeeded in clinching his 10th Australian Open title.

Describing the winning feeling back then, he said, “I played my best tennis at Australian Open. Only the team and the family knows what we have been through in the last five, six weeks and I can say this is the biggest victory of my career,” reported the Olympics website in January 2023. Now, can we say the stars are aligning once again?

Their head-to-head record now stands at 8-4 in Djokovic’s favor, and he holds a perfect 3-0 record against Zverev in Grand Slam matches. Are tennis fans in for something special to happen at the Rod Laver Arena this Sunday? The Serbian really wants to get to Slam number 25 and his eleventh AO title. Will he make it happen? Or will his injury woes reign supreme this time? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.