Novak Djokovic a doubt for Wimbledon after being forced out of French Open
Novak Djokovic is a major doubt for Wimbledon after being forced to withdraw from the French Open by a knee injury suffered in his fourth-round win on Monday.
The 24-time Grand Slam winner beat Francisco Cerundolo in five sets but scans the following day revealed a tear in his meniscus that ruled him out of the tournament.
Recovery times for the injury can vary but Djokovic, 37, looks to have only an outside chance of challenging for an eighth Wimbledon title when play begins at SW19 next month.
“Due to a torn medial meniscus in his right knee (discovered during an MRI scan performed today), Novak Djokovic, who was supposed to play Casper Ruud in the quarter-finals tomorrow, has been forced to withdraw from the Roland-Garros tournament,” French Open organisers said.
It means that Norwegian Ruud, runner-up in the last two years, will get a bye to the semi-finals, where he will face Alexander Zverev or Alex de Minaur.
Djokovic’s withdrawal also means that he will be replaced as world No1 by Jannik Sinner when the rankings are updated next week.
Australian Open champion Sinner swept into the last eight on Tuesday with a 6-2 6-4 7-6 (3) victory over Grigor Dimitrov.
In the women’s draw, three-time champion Iga Swiatek dropped just two games in a comprehensive win over Marketa Vondrousova.
Swiatek will take on Coco Gauff in the last four after the American fought back to beat Ons Jabeur in three sets.