“I’m concerned. I am, to be honest, physically,” said Novak Djokovic after his QF round in 2025 Australian Open. He faced a brutal leg injury in the match against Carlos Alcaraz where he had to take an MTO (medical time-out). Although he won, he knew things won’t be easy for him. And his fears turned true in the semifinal on Friday against Alexander Zverev. His hamstring injury made it impossible for the 24-time Grand Slam winner to stay on the court. As a result, he retired after the first set, while leaving everyone stunned. With that, he also lost a precious chance to win his 25th Major title. Now, it seems like he may not get another shot at this milestone!

After his disappointing exit from Melbourne, Djokovic has dropped gloomy signs on his journey this season. In an interaction with Tennis Majors, the 10-time AO king shared a huge, and concerning, update on his quest for Slam number 25. When asked what’s his most realistic chance of winning the next Major title going forward, the Serbian said, “I don’t know what to say,” while drawing clouds of uncertainty.

He did admit that he was content with the way his campaign went down under this month. But now it appears that his only priority is to keep himself injury free. Per the former World No.1, “the most important thing is for my body to hold up. I felt like I was improving as the tournament progressed, and that’s what disappoints me the most—I really felt the ball well.” Sadly, though, he failed to extend the run. “But it is what it is; this is part of professional sports.”

Due to the hamstring injury, he won’t participate for Serbia in the Davis Cup, which starts next week. Plus, his appearance at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open, in Doha, is also in jeopardy now. He’s been a winner there in 2016 and 2017 successively. Definitely not a good sign for his 2025 season going forward. However, he’s made it evident that he will first concentrate on his condition rather than stepping on the court sooner. This sentiment was echoed by a former ATP pro as well. Apparently, he defended Djokovic’s decision to retire from the semifinal at Rod Laver Arena.

Ex-pro Sam Querrey defends Novak Djokovic’s withdrawal from Australian Open

In an episode of the Nothing Major podcast, former American player Sam Querrey tried to justify Djoker’s tough call. “We’ve all had injuries like this,” he began. “He knows after that first set that it is probably not possible. Why risk it and maybe tear something a little more in his leg?” The Serbian had lost the first set in a tiebreak, 6-7, against Alexander Zverev. Immediately after the end of the set, he opted to retire.

Adding to his explanation, Querrey further mentioned, “I think if you’re playing someone first-round that’s ranked 92 in the world, Novak probably knows that he could get by that person. Maybe the leg will get a little better in the next round.” But when the going gets tough in terms of facing top-ranked players “Your body needs to be feeling 100% to get through that series of players.”

Moreover, Querrey also criticized the crowd at Rod Laver Arena for giving a distasteful reaction towards the 37-year-old veteran. After he retired, a section of fans booed him as he walked away from the court. Querrey said that “It was pretty lame of the Aussie Open crowd to boo him on the way out. Even Zverev addressed it to the crowd, like, ‘Guys, what are you doing? This is a 10-time champion, maybe the greatest player the sport has ever seen.’”

Djoker’s SF opponent had urged the fans to stop mocking him, saying “I know that everybody paid for tickets and everybody wants to see, hopefully, a great five-set match and everything. But you’ve got to understand, Novak Djokovic is somebody that has given this sport for the past 20 years absolutely everything of his life.”

In his career, spanning over two decades, the Serbian has won a total of 99 ATP titles so far. He’s still one trophy away from completing a century. And he needs one Slam victory to move past WTA legend Margaret Court’s 24 Majors. They both are currently leveled on the all-time list. With his latest update on this season, the road ahead is looking very tough. Will his injury woes get over soon and let him compete in at least one more Major to fulfill his dream of adding Slam 25 to his cabinet? Only time will tell.