MELBOURNE: Novak Djokovic, a ten-time Australian Open champion, reached his 13th semifinal at Melbourne Park on Wednesday afternoon in a dramatic way when the fifth seed Lorenzo Musetti retired with a two-set lead.
The Italian led 6-4 6-3 before injuring his right leg en route to being broken in the third game of the third set. Meanwhile, Djokovic added another milestone to his illustrious career simply by stepping on court Wednesday for his quarterfinal as the former No. 1 became just the third man to play 1, 400 tour-level matches.
Musetti stepped onto Rod Laver Arena, having lost all three previous major matches against Djokovic. He delivered an excellent all-around quarter-final performance, taking a two-set lead. However, he seemed to injure his upper right leg in the third game of the third set. Despite attempting to continue after physio treatment at 1-2, Musetti was eventually forced to retire after two hours and eight minutes of play.