Australian Open 2023: Novak Djokovic does nothing to quell injury sceptics in brutal victory

Cue the conspiracy theorists because Novak Djokovic and his ‘injured’ hamstring will be added to the honour roll on the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup for the 10th time.

Serbia's Novak Djokovic. Picture: Martin Keep/AFP

If only Michael Clarke could have moved as freely and quickly as Novak Djokovic when he injured his hamstring.

But that’s another story because the talking point at the Australian Open is that the trophy engravers may as well get started now.

Barring a monumental upset in the remaining rounds – or a genuine hamstring injury – Djokovic’s name will be added to the honour roll on the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup for the 10th time.

The chances of someone rolling the Serbian tennis legend in Melbourne are now buckley’s because he’s in devastating form and making fools of everyone.

His 6-2 6-1 6-2 fourth round demolition of Australia’s Alex de Minaur at Rod Laver Arena on Monday night was clinical and brutal.

Asked why he showed no mercy, Djokovic cut straight to the point, saying: “Because I wanted to.

“I cannot say I’m sorry … I really wanted to win straight sets.

Novak Djokovic celebrates the victory. Picture: William West/AFP

“Tennis is a very quick, very dynamic sport. Things can change in a matter of moments or in a matter of points. So I kept my focus all the way through and just played the best match of this year so far.”

De Minaur’s best hope of beating Djokovic was always if his supposedly damaged hamstring would tear or snap from running around the court too long.

Djokovic was telling everyone who would listen that he was actually hurt.

His left leg had been heavily bandaged all week and he’d taken medical time-outs in each of his three previous matches to receive treatment.

But few people were convinced it really was as bad as he was making out because Djokovic is an old master of mind games.

The sceptics had no reason to change their suspicions that he was just foxing all along after watching Djokovic bolt around Rod Laver Arena without any discomfort.

“It wasn’t obvious I was dealing with an injury. I didn’t feel anything today. Today was great,” he said.

“I’ve been taking a lot of pills these days. It’s not ideal. But trying to mask the pain.”

This wasn’t just another win for Djokovic, this was also an emphatic statement to the tennis world and Australia.

His message to his tennis peers could not have been clearer.

The debate about who is the GOAT will soon be over.

With Roger Federer already retired on 20 grand slam titles and Rafa Nadal stranded on 22 and his body failing him, Djokovic is determined to sail past them both with major No. 22 perhaps less than a week away.

And you can bet he won’t want to stop there with Margaret Court’s all-time record of 24 majors looming in his sights.

The up-yours message to Australia was even less subtle.

Watching Novak tonight makes me feel good about my tennis in general 🤣 how have I beaten this guy 🤣

— Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) January 23, 2023

Djokovic has neither forgotten nor forgiven the Lucky Country for booting him out last year.

De Minaur had nothing to do with his deportation but as the last Aussie standing in this year’s tournament he was always going to cop some of the backlash.

It was almost as though Djokovic had mixed up the names and thought he was staring down Alex Hawke – the former immigration Minister who sent the Serbian packing 12 months ago.

De Minaur is a real talent whose best days are still ahead of him and he can take comfort in knowing no-one can live with Djokovic when he plays that well.

Nick Kyrgios, watching from home after undergoing surgery, tweeted: “Watching Novak tonight makes me feel good about my tennis in general – how have I beaten this guy.”

De Minaur’s defeat will still sting for a while because he just wasn’t in the contest so it was a sobering reminder of how far he remains from greatness.

For Djokovic, the road to immortality continues on Wednesday when he faces Russia’s Andrey Rublev in the quarter-finals.

“I don‘t want to celebrate too early. I’m still in the tournament,” he said.

“He’s a very explosive player. A little bit like de Minaur. So hopefully the result will be the same.”

Originally published as Australian Open 2023: Novak Djokovic does nothing to quell injury sceptics in brutal victory