De Minaur Withdraws from Wimbledon Quarterfinal Against Djokovic Due to Hip Injury

Alex de Minaur Withdraws from Wimbledon Quarterfinal Against Novak Djokovic Due to Hip Injury

Australian tennis star Alex de Minaur has been forced to withdraw from his highly anticipated Wimbledon quarterfinal match against Novak Djokovic due to a hip injury. The news comes as a major disappointment for de Minaur, who had been in impressive form throughout the tournament.

De Minaur's injury occurred during his hard-fought fourth-round victory over Arthur Fils on Monday. The Aussie appeared to hurt himself in the closing points of the match, but he initially expressed confidence that he would be fit to face Djokovic. However, subsequent medical testing revealed a tear in the cartilage that connects to his abductor, an injury that de Minaur described as "a freak injury."

"Obviously not an announcement I wanted to make by any means," de Minaur told reporters in a press conference at the All England Club. "I had high risk of making it worse if I was to step on court."

"It's been two days of worrying and waiting to see," he added. "In the grand scheme of things it could've been worse, I'm trying to hold on to that. It's a freak injury."

De Minaur's withdrawal means that Djokovic will advance to his 13th career semifinal at Wimbledon, tying Roger Federer for the most of any man at the event in the Open Era. The seven-time champion will face either Taylor Fritz or Lorenzo Musetti in the semifinals.

The injury is a major setback for de Minaur, who has been enjoying a breakout season in 2023. He reached the semifinals of the Australian Open earlier this year and has climbed to a career-high ranking of No. 20 in the world.

Despite the disappointment, de Minaur remains optimistic about his future prospects. "I'm going to take some time off, get this right, and come back stronger," he said. "I'm still young and I have a lot of tennis left in me."

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