Johannesburg: World number four Novak Djokovic has refused to rule out undergoing surgery on his elbow injury that forced him to retire from the Wimbledon quarter-final match against 11th seed Tomas Berdych of Czech Republic.
The Serbian maestro, who has been struggling with his form this season, suffered a fresh blow on Wednesday when an elbow injury curtailed his chance to lift Wimbledon title for the fourth time.
Djokovic came into the match with a 25-2 head-to-head record against Berdych, but retired while trailing 7-6(2), 2-0 on No.1 Court.
When quizzed after the match what he’d do to resolve his injury issues, the three-time Wimbledon champion looked convinced to have an operation.
“The specialists that I’ve talked with, they haven’t been really too clear, mentioning also surgery, mentioning different options. Nobody was very clear in what needs to be done. As long as it kind of comes and goes, it’s fine,” Sport24 quoted the 30-year-old, as saying.
“But obviously, adding up, maybe it worked for seven, eight, ten months, but now the next seven months is not working that great. It’s adding up more and more. The more I play, the worse it gets. Yeah, I guess the break is something that I will have to consider right now,” he added.
With just few weeks left to the final major of the season – US Open, Djokovic admitted that he needs to consult specialist and find a long-term solution to his problem.
“I’m just going to talk with specialists, as I have done in the last year or so, try to figure out what’s the best way to treat it and to solve it, to find a long-term solution. Obviously short-term it’s probably rest is most appropriate. We will see,” he said.
Djokovic has endured a turbulent 12 months since becoming the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to hold all four grand slams at the same time following his French title last year.
He has failed to add another major title to his account, bowing out of the Australian Open in the second round before making the French Open exit in the quarter-finals. (ANI)