Novak Djokovic 'concerned' as Serb plays with injury at US Open

Novak Djokovic has been suffering from a lower back injury

Novak Djokovic has insisted he is still “the same warrior” on the tennis court but he is “concerned” about his 38-year-old body as he heads into the second week of the US Open. The Serbian superstar needed a medical timeout and painkillers to treat a lower back injury during his third-round win over Cam Norrie. The 24-time Grand Slam champion is now four wins away from breaking the record he shares with Margaret Court. And the world No.7 faces world No.144 Jan-Lennard Struff in the next fourth - and then probably Taylor Fritz in the quarter-finals. He has a 10-0 record against the American No.1. But Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner await in the last four. Djokovic retired in the Australian Open semi-final with a hamstring strain and he lost to the Italian world No.1 at the same stage at the French Open and Wimbledon. And after becoming the oldest man to reach the US Open fourth round since Jimmy Connors in 1991, he told ESPN: “Honestly I am concerned. Now there is more concern than I have ever had, even though I am really meticulous with the care for my body. Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT

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“I put in a lot of hours on and off the court to make sure that my body is fit and recovered well. But you know age is age, you can’t fight that. So, things are different. I have to adjust with the way I approach things. Sometimes I don’t train between matches. With my team when I have these discussions we think that long term, it is better. Recovery is better than hitting some balls on the court. “I put a lot of time in nowadays to my recovery, more than when I was young. To keep up with the youngsters I have to put in an extra hour, extra few hours every day, whether it is table work, recovery, using different wellness machines, good sleep and nutrition. “All of it comes into an equation and matters when you go deeper in the tournament. The top guys, particularly this year, I have played three semi-finals, the young guys, the top guys, they come in as fresh as the first round. I come with a half tank empty in a sense. I will try to change that for this tournament. It’s very unpredictable how the body is going to respond. “One thing for sure I will always give my very best to go as deep as I can. I have to do everything in my power to get myself ready, what do I need to do until the next match in order to be fit to play the best of five sets potentially.” Djokovic added: “It’s no secret that majors are the biggest priority for me, so I always try to aim to play my best tennis. This year I think I have done that. Three semi-finals? Could I have done better? Yes. Am I used to doing better? Yes.

Novak Djokovic needed a medical timeout against Cameron Norrie

“But semi-finals considering the circumstances and the body and what I am going through is a big success for me. There is always part of me that is like: ‘What are you are talking about? You have done what you have done the last 20 years. Nothing less than a title is a success’. So it’s an internal battle as well but realistically it’s a great success to get to three out of three semi-finals this year in Slam. “But I always have my eyes on the title, that’s the objective and I know that things are different than they were 18-19 years in a row. I am still the same warrior and still the competitor on the court. I still want to win. On a good day when I feel really well and my body is holding up, I feel I can challenge everyone. “And so I go with that level of confidence and mentality on the court. If I lose, I congratulate the opponent, he was better and that is it. I am going to leave it all out there.” In his post-match press conference, Djokovic talked about admitting at Wimbledon that: “You want to play. You're determined. But then the body doesn't want to listen.” The Serbian said: “I think I was, yeah, quite open in the press conference after the semis. I gave a little bit of insight of what's happening in my head. I'm asking myself questions of course more, nowadays than I have been ever before in terms of, like: ‘How long do I want to keep going at this level’, and ‘How do I want to approach my schedule to kind of extend my career’, because I really want to play. “I still feel like I enjoy myself competing, can be very hard on myself and my team, I know that, but I still feel like I have game left in me, to play at the highest level. “As I said before several times, as long as I have that feeling really of that level is still alive, is still present, I feel like I want to keep going. I want to keep pushing myself to see whether I can have a shot at another slam or, you know, any big tournaments.

Novak Djokovic is looking to win a 25th Grand Slam at the US Open

“And also enjoy the support and the love that I've been getting for the last couple years. It has been amazing anywhere I go, and I really, you know, enjoy that feeling. And there are other reasons and motivations I have for still keeping on playing. “But yeah, there's internal discussion happening as well for me, but I try to focus my thoughts and my attention to this very present moment of what needs to be done, so I'm still competing, and I might get a little more philosophical again when I finish the tournament, but I'll try to focus on next challenge here.” Djokovic beat Norrie 6-4 6-7 6-2 6-3 after sending down 18 aces to equal his personal record in a US Open match. Norrie has still to beat a top-ten player in a Grand Slam - and has now lost all seven of his matches to Djokovic. Asked if he has the level to win the title, the British No.2 said: “I think he has the level. Yes, the way he served today was, well, crazy. Especially at the beginning. But I think that the question lies physically. I mean, you can ask him just after me here, and see. But I think his tennis level, I was really impressed with it today. “I was playing so well this tournament, feeling the ball well. He managed the match extremely well. Yeah, my level is a different level to Charlie and to Sinner, and to do that back to back is a different kind of challenge.”

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