Novak Djokovic rarely leaves the court in the middle of a match. However, that is precisely what took place in Riyadh. The 24-time Grand Slam legend battled through a grueling first set of 76 minutes of rallies, grit, and grimacing before losing it 7-6(4) in the Six Kings Slam third-place matchup against Taylor Fritz. Then the unexpected moment arrived: Djokovic walked to the net, shook Fritz’s hand, and went into retirement. The shock reverberated through the crowd. As he puts it, “I want to apologise to everybody, sorry guys….Now it’s rest and really addressing some of the issues I have with my body. ” But let’s be honest, we know it was coming…

The signs were there, in fact. In Shanghai, he had been struggling with illness and persistent hip, back, and leg pain before losing to Valen

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