Djokovic quits French Open; Alcaraz, Sinner vying for favouritism

Novak Djokovic withdrew from the French Open on Tuesday (CEST) ahead of his quarter-final clash with Casper Ruud, citing a knee injury sustained in his round-of-16 clash on Monday.

With the defending champion no longer able to defend his title, 22-year-old Italian Jannik Sinner will become the new world No.1 when the latest edition of the ATP rankings are released on Monday.

Djokovic’s withdrawal was announced via an Instagram post from the Serbian, where he detailed his injury was a meniscus tear in the right knee.

Details on Djokovic’s knee injury

“I am really sad to announce that I have to withdraw from #rolandgarros,” Djokovic posted.

“I played with my heart and gave my all in yesterday’s match and unfortunately, due to a meniscus tear in my right knee, my team and I had to make a tough decision after careful consideration and consultation.

“I wish the best of luck to the players competing this week and sincerely thank the incredible fans for all of the love and continued support.”

The 24-time Grand Slam champion had alluded to the knee issue in his post-match comments following the round of 16. Though Djokovic defeated Francisco Cerundolo to make the quarter-finals on Monday, he was obviously hindered in the victory.

Afterwards, he shared that he was monitoring a niggle in his knee ahead of the round of 16 but court conditions caused the issue to flare up.

“I screwed up my knee because I made a quick move. I’m sliding and slipping all the time,” Djokovic explained on Monday.

It’s not known what impact the injury will have on the remainder of Djokovic’s season, with Wimbledon starting in under a month and the Olympics just around the corner.

Sinner and Alcaraz heavy favourites at French Open

Djokovic’s withdrawal from the French Open puts Ruud into the semi-finals. He will play either No.4 seed Alexander Zverev or Australia’s Alex de Minaur, who face off in the quarter-finals on Wednesday.

It’s the other side of the draw that holds the most likely Roland-Garros champion, however, with Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner meeting in a semi-final.

The pair were locked in a three-way race with Djokovic for the favourite tag in Paris. Now, tennis bookmakers have the two of them leading the outright betting odds, giving Alcaraz (+110) the slight edge over Sinner (+200).

It’s a semi-final that feels like a final, considering the three other men left in the draw are such heavy underdogs: Ruud (+550), Zverev (+550) and de Minaur (+2800).

Alcaraz and Sinner will play on Friday in Paris, with the winner going on to contest the Roland-Garros final on Sunday.

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