Novak Djokovic has received a walkover to the Wimbledon semi-finals after Alex de Minaur pulled out of Wednesday’s showdown at the last minute.
Djokovic was set for an incredibly awkward return to Centre Court after publicly slamming the booing British crowd in an angry on-court interview on Monday.
De Minaur, though, has been forced to pull out of his scheduled quarter-final against the 24-time Grand Slam champion after hurting himself in his last match.
It means that Djokovic will next face either 13th-seed Taylor Fritz or Lorenzo Musetti as he looks to continue his quest for an eighth Wimbledon trophy.
De Minaur, explaining his mid-tournament withdrawal, said: ‘I felt a loud crack during the last three points of my match against [Arthur] Fils.
‘[I] got a scan yesterday and it confirmed that this was the injury, with high risk of making it worse if I was to step on court.
‘I wanted to do anything I could to play [against Novak Djokovic]. I wanted to wake up today hoping that I would feel some sort of miracle and not feel it while I’m walking.
‘They haven’t been able to tell me a definite recovery plan because it’s such a unique injury.
‘Based on pain right now, it can be anywhere from three to six weeks. It just depends on how quickly my body heals.’