Melbourne (AFP)

Novak Djokovic qualified for the quarterfinals of the Australian Open on Sunday despite abdominal pain and he said he was "ready to accept" all the physical consequences to try to go as far as possible in this first Major of the year.

At 33, the Serbian is looking to win a record 9th title in Melbourne in order to get closer to the record for major titles co-held by his great rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal (20).

QUESTION: What did you do to be able to play today?

ANSWER: "A lot of recovery. I spent a lot of time on the table with my physio, I tried to rest as much as possible. I was given different treatments, with different devices. I took pills. 'Pain killer".

Q: Is it a tear like you said?

A: "I don't want to go into the details of what it is. Yes, I had an MRI, I did everything, I know what it is, but I don't want to talk about it. I'm still in contention. A few hours before entering the court today (Sunday), I still didn't know if I would be able to play. I didn't hit a ball yesterday (Saturday) ) because I used every hour to recuperate and at least give myself a little chance to show up on the court. If it hadn't been a Grand Slam tournament, I certainly wouldn't play. But it's a Grand Slam and so it means a lot to me at this point in my career. I want to do everything possible, in this short period of time, to get back on the court. Playing matches in five sets, for one player aggressive moves like me, it doesn't help with that kind of injury. Mentally I knew I would probably be in pain the whole game and that's what happened. But it was.

It wasn't a level of pain that I could take so I was able to play.

In addition, the pain came and went during the game.

Now I have forty hours before the next game.

Most likely, I won't be training tomorrow (Monday) and will resume my recovery routines hoping things will get better.

It's a bit of a gamble.

We don't know how it will evolve on the court.

It could get much worse, but it could also evolve in the right direction.

The problem is the painkillers: they mask what is really going on and you can get really badly injured.

But I am ready to accept whatever will happen after the tournament, because then I will take all the time it takes to heal myself before returning to a court ".

Q: Are you worried about your injury before facing Alexander Zverev in the quarterfinals on Tuesday?

A: "No. I have to accept what is happening to me and I will probably have to adjust my game and my positioning on the court according to my opponent. Against Sasha (Zverev) there will certainly be more long rallies, grueling exchanges. He moves well but he also has one of the best serves. He is very complete. The evolution of my physical state between now and the first point against Sasha is by the grace of God. I just hope that will evolve in the right direction and maybe 10% better than today. If so, I think I have my chance. "

Q: Are you worried about the long term?

A: "There is a very small risk that I will seriously injure myself and have to stay off the track for a while. Yes, there is a risk that the injury will get worse, but the doctors think that it also shouldn't get too bad to the point of jeopardizing my season. It may jeopardize the few tournaments that I thought I would play in the wake of the Australian Open. I may have to take a little more rest than planned to heal myself. "

Interview at a press conference

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