Aslan Karatsev s Australian Stunner One Of Biggest Slam Upsets Of 2021 | ATP Tour atptour.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from atptour.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Dimitrov not taking qualifier Karatsev lightly
When you’re chasing history, as Novak Djokovic is, you do whatever it takes to put yourself in a position to compete, to win.
That often means sacrifice. For Djokovic in pursuit of career-long rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal that can mean anything from time away from family, adherence to a strict diet and, sometimes, pushing through injury.
When the Serb slipped to the court early in the third set of his third-round matchup with American Taylor Fritz on Friday night, left splayed across the MELBOURNE logo, he knew he had over-stressed, perhaps even torn, an abdominal muscle. He would somehow survive, prevailing, 7-6(1), 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-2, and calling it “one of the most special wins in my life”. But no one, not even Nole himself, knew if he would recover in time to take the court against Canadian Milos Raonic in the Round of 16.
La revelación del Australian Open: Aslan Karatsev, el arma secreta de Rusia lanacion.com.ar - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from lanacion.com.ar Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Novak Djokovic wore tape above his right hip, and winced when he stretched for some shots in a three-hour match against Milos Raonic that will go into the records as his 300th win at a major. For anyone curious about the severity of his injury, he put it into context after qualifying for the Australian Open quarterfinals for the 12th time. “If it’s any other tournament than a Grand Slam then I would retire, withdraw from the event, that’s for sure,” Djokovic said in an on-court TV interview Sunday following his 7-6 (4), 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 fourth-round victory.