MELBOURNE (Australia): Defending champion Novak Djokovic fought back to register an injury-hit win over Taylor Fritz at the Australian Open on Friday.
The Slovak, who needed repeated treatment on an abdominal injury, recovered from losing the third and fourth sets to beat Fritz 7-6 (7/1), 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-2 as fans were kicked out ahead of a state-wide coronavirus lockdown.
In extraordinary scenes, the eight-time winner’s night match against was suspended at 11:30 pm (1230 GMT) to clear Rod Laver Arena before Victoria state’s six million residents were locked down at midnight.
Djokovic said he didn’t know if he’ll be able to play his last-16 match against Canada’s Milos Raonic.
“I know it’s a tear, definitely, of the muscle so I don’t know if I’ll manage to recover from that in less than two days,” he said. “I don’t know if I’m going to step out on the court or not, I’m just very proud of this achievement tonight.”
It was a brave effort from Djokovic, whose 17 major wins include 2012’s epic, 5hr 53min Australian Open final against Rafael Nadal, the Open era’s longest Grand Slam decider.
The five-day lockdown, during which fans are barred and players go into a biosecure “bubble”, follows an outbreak of the highly contagious UK coronavirus strain stemming from an airport hotel.
The Australian Open, which has encountered severe coronavirus problems and started three weeks late, has been the first tennis Grand Slam to welcome fans in large numbers since the pandemic.
