"Sacrificed his whole season for that Olympic gold"- Fans react to Novak Djokovic reportedly pulling out of training with Holger Rune ahead of US Open
Tennis fans reacted to Novak Djokovic reportedly pulling out of his training session with Holger Rune ahead of the US Open, with some claiming that the Serb 'sacrificed his whole season' for the Olympic gold medal. The World No. 2 reportedly withdrew from training to receive treatment for a possible injury.
Coming off the back of a maiden Olympic gold medal win, Djokovic trained for an hour with Holger Rune at the Arthur Ashe Stadium, but didn't show up for the second session despite his bag being present inside the court. According to reports, Rune's team was informed that the Serb would have to receive treatment to assess if he could resume his training.
News of 37-year-old's reported withdrawal from the training session prompted a flurry of reactions from fans on Reddit.
Reacting to the news on the tennis subreddit, a fan opined that Djokovic's decision to continue playing this season despite injuries to win the Olympic gold medal could cost him.
"Bro really made a deal with the devil. He sacrificed his whole season for that olympic gold," a fan commented on Reddit.
Another fan claimed that even if Djokovic does not win any tournaments this year, his tennis career is complete with the gold medal.
"Even if he doesn’t win a slam, this year is still a success for him as he finally got that elusive Olympic gold he’s been after his whole career. Dude has completed tennis. After Paris, everything else is just a bonus," a fan said.
While another said that Novak Djokovic didn't need to try and win another Grand Slam to surpass Margaret Court's record of 24 Grand Slams. Hailing the Serb as the 'GOAT', the fan wrote,
"For real like the dude winning another slam is just so he can tell everyone has more than everybody now. GOAT has nothing else to achieve," the fan commented.
Some fans also claimed at the possibility of Djokovic being able to manage his pain and backed him to reach the finals of the US Open:
"He'll be fine and easily reach the finals after popping a few painkillers," a fan said.
"We all know he's still making finals. Injured Djokovic is top 2 in the world," another added.
Another fan attributed the recurring injuries to Djokovic to his age, but remarked at longevity and wrote,
"As a fellow late 30s person, I do believe that the back pain is simply called "age." Usually, this news would give me the fear for Novak, but after the gold medal I'm just thrilled his still around," they wrote.
Novak Djokovic to face Radu Albot in 1R of US Open
Novak Djokovic will face qualifier Radu Albot of Moldovia in the first round of the US Open on August 26. Seeded second, the Serb is the defending champion and could face big-serving Ben Shelton of the US in the fourth round.
The four-time US Open champion would be eyeing a record 25th Grand Slam title and could face Andrey Rublev in the quarterfinals and Alexander Zverev in the semifinals.
Despite his success at the Olympics, Djokovic is yet to win a tournament this year, which is a stark contrast to last season, when he clinched three of four Grand Slam tournaments (Australian Open, French Open, and US Open).