New Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic said on Monday he hopes to return to action in a month’s time but is “not sure” how quickly his injured hamstring will heal. The Serb also revealed that he had not had time to properly celebrate winning a record-extending 10th Melbourne title on Sunday. His 6-3, 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (7/5) victory over Stefanos Tsitsipas saw Djokovic equal Rafael Nadal’s men’s record of 22 Grand Slam tournament wins and go back to world number one in the rankings.
“I’m not sure, I’m going to do some medical check-ups in the next few days,” he replied. “Then I’ll be able to talk about it a bit more and understand the situation.”
At one point he did not practice between matches.
“As it stands today I am still signed in for the Dubai tournament, which is in a month’s time. I hope I’ll be able to come back to the courts in several weeks’ time,” he said Monday.
“Let’s see, you know, I’ll speak to the medical team and then take it from there,” he added.
Djokovic’s coach, Goran Ivanisevic, said most players would not have played after a pre-tournament scan showed the extent of the hamstring injury.
“But not him — he is from outer space,” Ivanisevic told reporters.
“His brain is working differently. He gave everything, 77 therapies a day. Every day was kind of better and better.”
Djokovic said there had not been time for any partying on Sunday night to mark his latest achievement.
Asked how he had celebrated the victory, he smiled: “With the media, and with doping control!
