World number one Novak Djokovic could be out for a month after tearing a muscle in his Davis Cup defeat to Argentinian Juan Martin Del Potro, his spokesman said Monday.
“He has a partial muscle rupture and some internal bleeding,” the spokesman, Edoardo Artaldi, told German Press Agency dpa. Djokovic will have another scan Thursday.
Djokovic is likely to be out for four weeks but Thursday’s scan will provide a definitive answer, Artaldi said, Djokovic told the Serbian news agency Tanjug that his injury while playing for Serbia Sunday “is not as bad as it initially seemed,” but it nevertheless brought into question his appearance in Shanghai and Beijing.
“I hope I will recuperate by then, but will in any case not risk aggravating the injury and it is presently difficult to say how long I will have to rest,” Djokovic said.
Separately, a top Serbian tennis official criticized the International Tennis Federation (ITF), saying the intense schedule was putting the players’ health at risk.
“The condensed calendar is the biggest problem of today’s tennis,” the Serbian tennis organization TSS deputy president, Radmilo Armenulic, told the daily Blic.
Djokovic retired from the Davis Cup semi—final rubber against Argentina, less than six days after he won the US Open on September 12.
He skipped the first—round singles because of back pain, but took the court to give his country a better chance to overcome Argentina and defend the Davis title. But his retirement gave the Argentinians the decisive third point and a place in the final against Spain.
“They play non—stop, they are overwhelmed, tournaments are lined up like in a manufacture,” Armenulic said. “We lost the title, what to do about it, but Novak’s condition is a far greater concern.” “The International Tennis Federation must finally realize that the players’ health is the most important,” he said.
