Djokovic’s Wimbledon at risk as he undergoes knee surgery for torn medial meniscus

The Serb is to undergo surgery in Paris on Wednesday, according to reports by French newspaper L’Equipe

Novak Djokovic retires injured at Roland-Garros 2024 © Chryslène Caillaud / Panoramic

June 5, 2024

Novak Djokovic is to undergo knee surgery on a torn medial meniscus in Paris which will may rule him out of Wimbledon, according to a report by L’Equipe.

The Serb suffered the injury during an epic five-set victory over Francisco Cerundolo in the fourth round of Roland-Garros on Monday, Djokovic’s second five-set match in a row.

Yesterday, an MRI scan revealed a torn medial meniscus in his right knee, leading Djokovic to pull out of the clay-court tournament.

“I am really sad to announce that I have to withdraw from Roland Garros,” he wrote on social media.

“I played with my heart and gave my all in yesterday’s match and unfortunately, due to a medial meniscus tear in my right knee, my team and I had to make a tough decision after careful consideration and consultation.”

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In further developments, French sports newspaper L’Equipe have now reported that the 24-time Grand Slam champion will undergo surgery on the affected area in the French capital on Wednesday. The procedure is likely to rule Djokovic out of this year’s Wimbledon championships, which starts on 1st July.

However, he has yet to officially withdraw from the event and it is believed that the 37-year-old has a fighting chance to be fit in time to compete at both Wimbledon and this summer’s Paris Olympics, also taking place on the clay courts of Roland-Garros.

Winning a medal – preferably gold – at the Olympics is one of Djokovic’s most important targets for the season, of that the Serb has made no secret.

This injury comes at one of the worst possible times of the year for the world No 1, as he had outlined these three months – comprising Roland-Garros, Wimbledon and the Olympics – as the most important stretch of the season for him.

Missing Wimbledon would be a huge blow for Djokovic, but it will be one worth taking if he is able to recover in time for the Olympics.

Recovery time for this sort of injury and procedure can be anywhere between six weeks and three months. The start of the tennis competition at the Olympics is a little over seven weeks away.

Djokovic was frustrated at the state of the courts at Roland-Garros throughout both his third and fourth-round matches, repeatedly asking the tournament supervisors if the court could be swept more regularly to avoid build-ups of clay. These requests were roundly denied.

Djokovic slipped several times during his win over Cerundolo, something which he later said had contributed to his knee injury, although the severity of the issue at the time was not yet known.

The withdrawal of the defending champion is enough of a blow in itself to Roland-Garros, but the direct link between the state of the courts and Djokovic’s potential absence from this summer’s Paris Olympics is now a major headache for tournament organisers – one that is unlikely to go away anytime soon.