Knee Surgery Puts Wimbledon In Serious Doubt For Novak Djokovic

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Novak Djokovic is reportedly set to have surgery on his torn meniscus in Paris after withdrawing from the French Open. With Wimbledon less than a month away, the 24-time Grand Slam winner may not be able to take the grass courts. 

The Serb tore the meniscus in his right knee during his fourth-round match against Francisco Cerundolo. Djokovic trailed 2-1 in the match, but despite picking up the serious knee injury, was able to battle back and take the next two sets to best the Argentinian. Casper Ruud, who beat American Taylor Fritz in the fourth round, was awarded a walkover after Djokovic had to pull out of the Grand Slam.

While Djokovic has proven countless times over the years that his body isn't built like most other people's, him recovering in time to be fit for Wimbledon, which begins on July 1, seems highly doubtful. The more likely scenario appears to be Djokovic skipping out on Wimbledon and focusing on preparing for the Olympics, which the tennis tournament in The Games begins on July 27.

Every player who makes a run in Wimbledon who has also qualified for the Olympics will have a very quick turnaround. You add a knee surgery to the scenario like Djokovic will have to, and it comes across as a nearly impossible scenario to maneuver.

Djokovic's status for Wimbledon is completely up in the air following his knee injury at the French Open. (Photo by Silvia Lore/Getty Images)

Prior to injuring his knee, Djokovic spoke candidly about how he has his sights set on winning gold in this year's Olympics in Paris.

"It's all about building my game for clay courts," Djokovic said in April. "I want to reach my peak for Paris. That's where I want to play my best tennis. Anything else is a bonus, so let's see what happens."

The 37-year-old has won everything in the sport minus a gold medal, with his lone medal being a bronze he picked up during the 2008 Games in Beijing. Djokovic lost to Rafael Nadal in the semifinals in '08 before beating James Blake to earn a spot on the podium.

Djokovic, a seven-time winner of Wimbledon, lost in the final a year ago to Carlos Alcaraz. 

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Mark covers all sports at OutKick while keeping a close eye on the world of professional golf. He graduated from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga before earning his master's degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee. He somehow survived living in Knoxville despite ‘Rocky Top’ being his least favorite song ever written. Before joining OutKick, he wrote for various outlets including SB Nation, The Spun, and BroBible. Mark was also a writer for the Chicago Cubs Double-A affiliate in 2016 when the team won the World Series. He's still waiting for his championship ring to arrive. Follow him on Twitter @itismarkharris.