Tennis champion Novak Djokovic has unexpectedly withdrawn from his semi-final match against Alexander Zverev at the Australian Open, leaving fans in disbelief.

The ten-time Australian Open champion decided to exit the match after one hour and 21 minutes on Friday, following a 7-5 loss in the tiebreak.

“An unbelievable turn of events,” remarked tennis legend and Nine’s AO commentator John McEnroe during the broadcast.

“Unbelievable turn of events.” (Photo by Hannah Peters/Getty Images)

The audience — who anticipated a thrilling five-match duel — erupted into boos, but Zverev called for respect during his post-match interview.

“I understand that everyone paid for tickets and wanted to witness a five-set match, but you must realize, Novak has dedicated 20 years of his life to this sport,” Zverev stated in his post-match interview.

“He has triumphed in this tournament with an abdominal tear, with a hamstring injury; if he cannot continue a match, he simply cannot. Please, show respect.”

Zverev further expressed his admiration for Djokovic. “Honestly, there’s no one on the tour I respect more than Novak,” he declared.

“He has been one of my closest friends on tour. Whenever I faced struggles, I could always reach out to him for advice.”

“I’m being 100 per cent honest, there’s no guy on the tour that I respect more than Novak.” (Photo by Darrian Traynor/Getty Images)

The injury initially surfaced during his quarter-final match against Carlos Alcaraz on Tuesday. Throughout the match, he exhibited signs of physical discomfort, leaving the court at 4-5 in the first set for a medical timeout and returning with his upper left thigh bandaged.

McEnroe also voiced his dismay at the audience’s reaction to Djokovic’s withdrawal. “They cannot be booing him,” he exclaimed on air. “Please! He’s won this ten times, for heaven’s sake. Unreal.”

Zverev is now set to advance to the Australian Open finals, facing the winner of Friday night’s second semi-final between Jannik Sinner and Ben Shelton.

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