DJOKOVIC’S COMEBACK
Serb’s seventh Australian title hopes ended by Korean
WOUNDED 12-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic was sent tumbling out of the Australian Open by Korean giant-killer Chung Hyeon yesterday, but ice-cool Roger Federer roared into the quarter-finals.
The Serb, who was returning from six months out with a right elbow injury, was clearly in pain as his hopes of a seventh Melbourne Park title were extinguished on Rod Laver Arena 7-6 (7-4), 7-5, 7-6 (7-3).
He was keen not to take away from the glasses-wearing Chung’s huge achievement after the 21-year-old followed up his win over fourth seed Alexander Zverev in the last round.
“Congratulations. Amazing,” said Djokovic, who also had an apparent hip or groin problem, screeching at times when stretching for the ball.
“He was the better player on court today and he deserved to win.”
Djokovic said the injuries started troubling him at the end of the first set and a decision on where he goes from here would be made after talking with his medical team.
Chung’s reward is a last-eight clash with unheralded American Tennys Sandgren, who upset Austrian fifth seed Dominic Thiem 62, 4-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-7 (7-9).
The Korean, ranked 58, described Djokovic as “my idol.”
Sandgren was also in a daze, becoming just the second man in the last 20 years since Frenchman Nicolas Escude to make the quarter-finals on his Australian Open debut.
“I don’t know if this is a dream or not,” he said.
“My biggest match, as well, pretty neat. I definitely had a real pinch-me moment. Wow, this is hopefully real. If I wake up now, I’m going to be real upset!”
The man from Tennessee, who hadn’t won a Grand Slam match until this tournament after being knocked out in the first round at last year’s French and US Opens, said the wins had given him belief.
“I know that I’m good enough to do good things in the game. This is confirmation for me,” he said.
Sandgren said he had the advantage of being an unknown player in the field.
“Maybe guys aren’t sure what to expect and they don’t know that I’m serving well and what spots I like, or how I’m going about playing the points, and I’m using that to my advantage,” he said. AFP