PARIS [France]: Defending champion Novak Djokovic, who produced a typically resilient performance to defeat Francisco Cerundolo in the fourth round of the French Open 2024, revealed that he has been battling a right knee injury for the past few weeks.
The Serbian looked to be in peak form against Francisco Cerundolo after coming from two sets and a break down to win 6-1, 5-7, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3.
After the five-set thriller the Serbian was unsure how much the victory would cost him, however, the world No. 1 spoke cautiously about the knee injury he sustained in his fourth-round win. Got it right at the beginning of the second set.
"I've been having a little trouble with my right knee for the last few weeks, so to speak, but I haven't had any injuries that I'm concerned about. I've been playing a few tournaments with it, and I haven't had any There were no injury issues to date," Djokovic said in the post-match press conference, as quoted by ATP."Of course, finishing late a few nights ago didn't help with sleep, biorhythms and recovery. But I felt really good coming into the match – played as best I could under the circumstances – and played the first set really well. Then in the third game of the second set, I slipped and fell several times, which affected my knee."
Watching Djokovic rally from the brink to win a historic five-setter may be a familiar story in the context of the Serbian's illustrious career, but there was something special in his preparation for his long win over Cerundolo. He chose not to practice on the day off after winning his third-round match against Lorenzo Musetti at 3:07 a.m. on Sunday morning, the latest finish in tournament history."I played petanque yesterday. It was the same difficult activity as the one I did yesterday with my friends in the Bois de Boulogne. [It] was actually an easy day. I slept most of the day yesterday and did a lot of physio work and Some exercise in the water also works. Some exercise in the water always helps reduce stress on the joints and muscles, and I tried to get good sleep again, which I did," Djokovic revealed."[Today] I came on the court, I warmed up well, the first set was very good. I didn't feel that the last match affected me so much that I was unable to run or maintain the level. I won four-and "Played for more than an hour and a half. It was longer than the match against Musetti. So physically I'm fine," he said.Djokovic's next task will be to prepare for his quarterfinal match against Casper Ruud. The top seed is hoping his knee will heal as quickly as possible ahead of a rematch of last year's Roland Garros final on Wednesday.
"I carried it with me for a couple of weeks, but I didn't feel like it was affecting me on the court. I mean, as soon as I warm up, I'll feel good. I'll run, I'll do splits," Djokovic said of the injury. Said about, “Slide, whatever."
The Serbian looked to be in peak form against Francisco Cerundolo after coming from two sets and a break down to win 6-1, 5-7, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3.
After the five-set thriller the Serbian was unsure how much the victory would cost him, however, the world No. 1 spoke cautiously about the knee injury he sustained in his fourth-round win. Got it right at the beginning of the second set.
"I've been having a little trouble with my right knee for the last few weeks, so to speak, but I haven't had any injuries that I'm concerned about. I've been playing a few tournaments with it, and I haven't had any There were no injury issues to date," Djokovic said in the post-match press conference, as quoted by ATP."Of course, finishing late a few nights ago didn't help with sleep, biorhythms and recovery. But I felt really good coming into the match – played as best I could under the circumstances – and played the first set really well. Then in the third game of the second set, I slipped and fell several times, which affected my knee."
Watching Djokovic rally from the brink to win a historic five-setter may be a familiar story in the context of the Serbian's illustrious career, but there was something special in his preparation for his long win over Cerundolo. He chose not to practice on the day off after winning his third-round match against Lorenzo Musetti at 3:07 a.m. on Sunday morning, the latest finish in tournament history."I played petanque yesterday. It was the same difficult activity as the one I did yesterday with my friends in the Bois de Boulogne. [It] was actually an easy day. I slept most of the day yesterday and did a lot of physio work and Some exercise in the water also works. Some exercise in the water always helps reduce stress on the joints and muscles, and I tried to get good sleep again, which I did," Djokovic revealed."[Today] I came on the court, I warmed up well, the first set was very good. I didn't feel that the last match affected me so much that I was unable to run or maintain the level. I won four-and "Played for more than an hour and a half. It was longer than the match against Musetti. So physically I'm fine," he said.Djokovic's next task will be to prepare for his quarterfinal match against Casper Ruud. The top seed is hoping his knee will heal as quickly as possible ahead of a rematch of last year's Roland Garros final on Wednesday.
"I carried it with me for a couple of weeks, but I didn't feel like it was affecting me on the court. I mean, as soon as I warm up, I'll feel good. I'll run, I'll do splits," Djokovic said of the injury. Said about, “Slide, whatever."
