Australian player Alex De Minaur withdrew from his Wimbledon quarter-final against second seed Novak Djokovic on Wednesday, citing a hip injury, which allowed the Serbian to advance to his 13th semi-final at the grasscourt Grand Slam, equalling a record.
Ninth-seeded De Minaur sustained the injury in the latter part of his 6-2 6-4 4-6 6-3 fourth-round victory over Frenchman Arthur Fils on Monday.
“I’m heartbroken to withdraw due to a hip injury, specifically a minor tear in the fibre cartilage at the end or connection to the adductor,” said De Minaur, who had previously shocked Djokovic at the United Cup team event earlier in the season.
“I heard a loud crack during the final three points of my match against Fils, and a subsequent scan confirmed the injury. The risk of aggravating it further was high if I were to compete,” he explained.
The 25-year-old has reached two Grand Slam quarter-finals in his career, losing to Dominic Thiem at the 2020 U.S. Open and Alexander Zverev at this year’s French Open.
“I learned the scan results yesterday but hoped to wake up today feeling miraculously better,” added De Minaur, who is experiencing his best season on tour, having broken into the top 10.
