Alex De Minaur, the 25-year-old Australian ninth seed, has withdrawn from his Wimbledon quarter-final match against second seed Novak Djokovic due to a hip injury. The announcement came on Wednesday, following De Minaur’s hard-fought victory over Frenchman Arthur Fils in the fourth round, where he sustained the injury.
De Minaur, who previously reached the quarter-finals in the 2020 US Open and the 2023 French Open, expressed his disappointment. “I’m devastated to pull out due to a hip injury, a little tear of the fibre cartilage that is at the end of or connects to the adductor,” he explained.
“I felt a loud crack during the last three points of my match against Fils and got a scan yesterday which confirmed the injury. With high risk of making it worse if I was to step on court, I knew I had to withdraw.”
He added, “I knew the results of the scan yesterday, but hoped I would wake up today and feel some sort of miracle. The problem with me going out and playing is one stretch, one slide, one anything can make this injury go from three-to-six weeks to four months.”
De Minaur’s withdrawal allows Djokovic, a seven-time Wimbledon champion, to advance to his 13th semi-final at the All England Club, equalling Roger Federer’s record. Djokovic, who was stunned by De Minaur at the United Cup team tournament earlier this season, is now looking to match Federer’s tally of eight Wimbledon titles. Djokovic’s next opponent will be either American Taylor Fritz or 25th seed Lorenzo Musetti, who are set to face off later.
The Australian is now in a race to recover in time for the Olympics, where the tennis event begins at Roland Garros on July 27. The injury presents a significant setback for De Minaur, who had been in impressive form throughout the tournament.
