Defending champion Novak Djokovic forced by knee injury to withdraw from French Open

Defending champion Novak Djokovic has pulled out of the French Open quarterfinals after suffering a knee injury in the fourth round. Djokovic came back from the brink againstFrancisco Cerundolo on Monday (Jun 3) in five sets but paid the price for it as his dodgy knee suffered serious damage due to the exertion.

The Serbian underwent a MRI scan late on Tuesday afternoon and took the call to withdraw from his quarterfinal clash against Casper Ruud, scheduled for Wednesday.

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Djokovic's scanrevealed a “torn medial meniscus in his right knee”, which makes his participation in next month's Wimbledon a serious doubt.

"I am really sad to announce that I have to withdraw from Roland Garros. 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," Djokovic wrote on his social media handles.

"I wish the best of luck to the players competing this week and sincerely thank the incredible fans for all of the love and continued support. See you soon."

The 24-time Grand Slam winner had hinted after the match against Cerundolo that he might not go the distance as the injury was being looked up by the doctors.

Djokovic's heroic comeback win

Djokovic, who had been troubled by his knee in the lead-up to the marquee tournament, started the fourth round match in exemplary fashion,breaking the youngster in the fourth game and winning the set.

However, early on in the second set,Djokovic felt something in his right leg and called for a medical timeout after moving gingerly across the court. The Serbian could be seen holding his knee during the treatment but returned to an applauding crowd, wanting to see the defending champion give it a serious go.

During one of the few unscheduledbreaks in the second set, Djokovic could also be seen having a go at the officials for notmopping up the area near the baseline, which contributed to the injury.

Despite the injury and being two set down, Djokovic managed to dig deep and emerged victorious with a6-1, 5-7, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 scoreline.

Djokovic blasts organisers

Djokovic's injury was aggravated as he played two back-to-back five setters in space of three days. The third round match againstLorenzo Musetti ended at 3:07 am (0107 GMT) on Sunday which was the latest a match has finished at Roland Garros.

Djokovic was not pleased with how officialshandled the proceedings and said he had to reach his limits to win the match.

"I don't want to get into this debate. I think certain things could have been handled differently," said Djokovic.

"Physically, I really went to my limits to win this match. When you play rallies of more than 20 shots, at two in the morning.... Who plays at two in the morning?" he added.

Djokovic's withdrawal means Casper Ruud advances to the semifinal where he will face either fourth seed Alexander Zverev or 11th seed Alex de Minaur on Friday.

(With inputs from agencies)