Novak Djokovic injury accusations slammed by former world No 1 – ‘It’s annoying’

Pictured: Novak Djokovic and Kim Clijsters.
Novak Djokovic and Kim Clijsters.

Kim Clijsters has defended Novak Djokovic amid “annoying” speculation regarding his exit from the Australian Open.

Ten-time Australian Open champion Djokovic was forced to retire injured in his semi-final against world No 2 Alexander Zverev after losing an 84-minute first set in a tiebreak.

Injury concerns were first raised by the Serbian after his quarter-final win over Carlos Alcaraz, with the seventh seed not practising in between his quarter and semi-final matches.

Controversial past accusations of Djokovic faking physical struggles resurfaced in the aftermath of his match versus Alcaraz.

In response, the 37-year-old posted an image of a scan on his hamstring – showing a visible tear – on social media the day after he exited the tournament.

Djokovic was controversially booed off the court by some fans following his semi-final retirement, with many past and present stars coming to the Serbian’s defence since then.

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Among those to defend the 24-time Grand Slam winner is Clijsters, herself a former world No 1 and a four-time Grand Slam winner.

Speaking on Served with Andy Roddick, the Belgian referenced back Djokovic’s injury struggles at the 2024 French Open – where he was forced to withdraw from his quarter-final due to a meniscus tear.

Djokovic was forced to undergo knee surgery after sustaining that injury at Roland Garros, reaching the Wimbledon final just weeks into his rehabilitation.

She said: “The thing with Novak is we have been so used to seeing him get through it all with the recovery things that he does, with his mental strength.

“It’s almost like we think it’s normal he will heal from this during the tournament and then people question whether he’s telling the truth when it is happening.

“That is where I am like it’s already annoying enough when you have a problem, you don’t want people to question whether you are being honest.

“It’s annoying. I do feel like with him people are questioning a lot of it. I remember people saying: ‘I don’t even know if he had his knee surgery.'”

Following his Australian Open retirement, Djokovic has since had to withdraw from Serbia’s Davis Cup tie against Denmark in Copenhagen.

The Serbian has signed up to play at the Qatar Open in February alongside the likes of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, though looks likely to withdraw in the coming weeks.

Djokovic is also yet to announce whether his partnership with Andy Murray, who he brought in as a coach for the Australian Open, will continue across the remainder of the season.

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