"I couldn't even hold the racquet" - Sebastian Korda reflects on his injury retirement against Karen Khachanov in Australian Open QF
Sebastian Korda revealed that he could not even properly hold the racquet during his match against Karen Khachanov at the 2023 Australian Open after suffering an injury to his wrist.
Korda's impressive run at the Grand Slam Down Under finally came to an end upon retiring from his quarterfinal match against 18th seed Karen Khachanov on Tuesday. The American looked displeased with his wrist at the start of the match and could not properly execute his forehand shots before calling it quits.
Speaking to the press after the disappointing exit from the tournament, the World No. 31 reflected on his injury.
"I knew kind of what it was right away, right when I hit the return. I kind of felt that spot that I was feeling before. Some forehands, I couldn't even hold the racquet. Volleying was almost impossible for me. So it was a little tough," expressed Korda.
The 22-year-old went on to add that he felt a similar pain during his campaign at the Adelaide International 1. He was surprised to notice that the injury flared up again despite completely recovering from it.
"I had it a little bit in Adelaide a couple weeks ago, but then it went away. During the matches, it was completely fine. Then just one kind of mishit return, and it started to bother me a lot of after that," the American conveyed.
"I have no idea. I don't know what it really is. I had it in Adelaide and then it went away completely. Now it just came back out of nowhere. Don't know. See a doctor right after this and figure out more," he added.
Khachanov was leading 7-6 (5), 6-3, 3-0 when Sebastian Korda couldn't continue the match any more.
"More positives than negatives" - Sebastian Korda content about his 2023 Australian Open campaign despite miserable ending
Despite enduring an unhappy ending to his campaign at the 2023 Australian Open, Sebastian Korda was upbeat as he felt there were a lot of positives to take from the tournament.
The American acknowledged that the injury was tough to take. However, he expressed hopes of recovering and coming off better in the future.
"There is a lot of positives. I mean, way more positives than even negatives. Today was tough, but hopefully it's nothing serious and I can take care of it so I don't have it in the future," said Korda.
"Still a great tournament. My first quarterfinal in a Grand Slam. You know, I'm going to go forward with my head high and keep working," asserted the young American.
Sebastian Korda has had a remarkable start to the season, finishing runner-up in Adelaide. He beat heavyweights Daniil Medvedev and Hubert Hurkacz on his way to the quarterfinals in Melbourne.