Novak Djokovic has revealed that he would have considered withdrawing from any other tournament after undergoing knee surgery except for Wimbledon.
Djokovic succumbed to a torn meniscus in his right knee while playing Francisco Cerundolo in the third round of the French Open in early June. Despite slipping on the clay multiple times during that match, he was able to continue and prevailed in five grueling sets.
But defeat came at a cost. The Serb underwent knee surgery the next day following an MRI scan and withdrew from his quarterfinal match against Casper Ruud.
Many people, including his surgeon, thought that Djokovic had no chance of playing at Wimbledon with less than a month of recovery time for the injury. But the former World No. 1 defied the odds and quickly returned to the practice courts in the last two weeks.
He was willing to give himself every option in his rehab and recovery just to be able to play. And Djokovic, who declared himself fit in the days leading to the tournament, played superbly in his opening match against Czech qualifier Vit Kopriva, dropping just five games.
Despite wearing a protective knee brace, Djokovic did not play like a person in pain. During his post-match on-court interview, he stated that he wouldn't have risked playing if it was any other tournament. The prestige and glamor of Wimbledon were too big.
"Well, I tried to really focus on the game and not too much about the knee. Everything I could possibly do I have done with my team in the last three and half weeks in order to give myself a chance to be able to play in front of you today."
"I think if it was for any other tournament, I probably wouldn't risk it, wouldn't rush it as much. I just love Wimbledon. I love coming back here."
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