2 months ago
26
A Wimbledon star who has had his career funded by Novak Djokovic has been forced to retire in his first round match after collapsing.
The Championships continues in soaring temperatures on day two, with a number of players in first round action with the sweltering heat proving difficult to play through in some cases.
While the likes of Carlos Alvaraz and Emma Raducanu were in action on day one, day two would play host to the likes of Coco Gauff, while Djokovic himself was pencilled in to feature on Centre Court on Tuesday.
Elsewhere, though, at the All England club, some of the lesser-known names were doing their best to compete for important prize money and progress in the tournament.
That included down on Court Eight, which played host to Hamad Medjedovic and Sebastian Ofner in their first round match in the men's singles.
Things were going well up until the end of the first set, which featured a hard-fought tiebreak with Serb Medjedovic, 21, 8-7 up. Then, though, things went south.
A Wimbledon star (right) who had his career funded by Novak Djokovic (left) was forced to retire from his first round match at Wimbledon
Hamad Medjedovic was 8-7 up in a tie break in the first set of match against Sebastian Ofner
He tried to play on after a medical timeout but retired at 3-1 down in the second set after losing the first
Medjedovic had expenses such as travel and coaching paid for by Djokovic early in his career
Medjedovic slipped at the back of the court when he had set point, trying to change direction with his legs ending up heading opposite ways.
He let out a cry of pain, with the umpire rushing to check up on him. A physio also entered the court as he was shaded from the sun by a ball girl.
Though clearly in some discomfort, the star limped back to his chair after a lengthy delay. On the very next point, though, he slipped again as his left ankle buckled.
He lost the set and departed the court for a medial time-out. After a 14 minute break, though, he fought on.
It didn't take long until the game was done, however, with Medjedovic 3-1 down in the second set and deciding to call it a day, sacrificing his spot in the competition.
Now world No 73, Medjedovic had his early career funded by Djokovic, as the 24-time grand slam champion paid for expenses for his countryman.
Djokovic would help out with travel, coaching and other expenses, helping Medjedovic to rise through the ranks and ultimately win the Next Gen ATP finals and end up on the circuit. The duo have also played together in the Davis Cup.
Now, though, Djokovic's prodigy is out, with it unsure how serious his injury is. He has never made it through the first round at Wimbledon before.
