While seven-time champion Novak Djokovic may not have a better shot at a record 25th Grand Slam than the one he has at hand in Wimbledon this week, a recent injury scare on Wednesday may not leave him in the best standing for a Jannik Sinner test in the semi-final on Friday, felt former American tennis player Tracy Austin.
The 62-year-old Austin said that Djokovic might have to hit the peak of his current powers to battle past Sinner, who holds a positive 5-4 head-to-head record after having trumped the Serb at the same hurdle at the French Open in May. Djokovic, 38, appeared to have completed his quarter-final win on Wednesday over Sinner’s Italian compatriot Flavio Cobolli after sustaining an injury from a nasty split while on match-point in the fourth set.
“It was a nasty fall. It was very awkward,” Djokovic said after his 6-7(6), 6-2, 7-5, 6-4 win. “That happens on grass. I’ve had quite a few of those throughout my grass-court career.”
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While he appeared to dispel concerns with his last two points to close out the game, Djokovic said he could only feel the full extent of the injury on the next day. Evidently, Djokovic cancelled his practice session on Thursday ahead of his third meeting against Sinner at SW19.
“Obviously, [my] body is not the same today like it was before, so I guess the real impact or effect of what happened I will feel tomorrow. So let’s see,” Djokovic said. “I’m hoping the next 24, 48 hours, the severity of what happened is not too bad, that I’ll be able to play at my best and free of pain in two days.”
“Hopefully all will be well in two days.”
Novak Djokovic comments on his fall in the final game of the match#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/J6KtaFwemD
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 9, 2025
‘Concerning
While Djokovic is likely to give it his all on the hallowed grass on Friday, two-time major winner Austin said that she was concerned about the physical conditioning of the former world no. 1.
“I am concerned. There is a concern because this is the match of the rest of his career. He’s 38 years old, and we know that his motivation is to win his 25th major.
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“25th major [and] I think the best place for him to win it is on grass here. When he comes back healthy, at 39, is he going to be better than he is at 38? Don’t think so. Are Sinner and Alcaraz going to be better? Probably so,” Austin said on BBC Radio 5 Live on Thursday.
As Djokovic recovers from his unusual injury, Sinner too will enter the contest with some concerns left by his elbow niggle from the R16 match against Grigor Dimitrov. The 23-year-old top seed, however, brushed aside all concerns when he took down American Ben Shelton in straight sets in the last-eight. Sinner, however, admitted that he had undergone MRI scans ahead of the clash.
“They’re (Djokovic and Sinner) both going in a little bit compromised, possibly physically, and if there is a surface that Novak’s going to beat Sinner on, I think it would be grass. He’s [a] seven-time champion and [for] Sinner this would be his least favourite surface, so I’d want to be on a couch somewhere watching every single point of that match because there’s so much history on the line,” remarked Austin.
