A “devastated” Alex de Minaur has been forced to end his Wimbledon campaign after failing to overcome a hip injury.
Mere hours before he was set to face off against Novak Djokovic in his first quarter-final at the All England Club on Wednesday, July 10, de Minaur had to pull out due to the injury which could sideline him for between three to six weeks.
The 25-year-old suffered the injury in the final moments of his fourth-round match against Arthur Fils on Monday, July 8.
De Minaur broke the news of his injury and withdrawal during a press conference at the All England Club.
“I’m devastated but I had to pull out due to a hip injury, a little tear of the fibre cartilage that kind of is at the end or connects to the adductor,” he told reporters.
“I felt a loud crack during the last three points of my match against Fils, and a scan yesterday confirmed the injury and that I was at high risk of making it worse if I was to step on court.
“They haven’t been able to give me a definite recovery time because it’s such a unique injury. Right now, it could be anywhere from three-to-six weeks out, it just depends how quickly my body heals.
“The problem with me going out and playing was that one stretch, one slide or one anything, could make this injury go from three to six weeks out to four months, so it was too much to risk.”
While the decision to withdraw was no doubt difficult, the Aussie tennis sensation said it would have been “disrespectful” to play while not at 100 per cent.
“It’s devastating. No way to beat around the bush, I haven’t really been able to enjoy what I’ve achieved this week because I knew as soon as I felt that pop, something bad had happened,” he said.
“It’s been two days of worrying, and waiting to see what the results showed. In the grand scheme of things, it could have been worse.
“I have been struggling to sleep the last couple of days. I feel it walking, just hoping I would wake up and feel it a little bit less, or that I could at least go on court.
“But I think it’s almost disrespectful for me not to go on the court close to 100 per cent against someone like Novak.
“This is a completely unique injury they’ve got very little research on. There’s four years worth of research, so that’s why they couldn’t give me an approximate recovery time.
“It’s more just hope, wait and see. I’m hoping the pain goes down with a bit of rest.”
Upon hearing of de Minaur’s withdrawal and injury woes, fans quickly extended their support, wishing him a swift recovery.
De Minaur’s withdrawal means Djokovic will advance to the semi-final where he will face off against Taylor Fritz or Lorenzo Musetti on Friday, July 12.
-with AAP.