Djokovic to compete in Paris after knee surgery
Novak Djokovic is going for gold. The 24-time Grand Slam singles champion will represent Serbia at the 2024 Paris Olympics, the Serbian Olympic Committee announced on Tuesday, marking Djokovic’s fifth Olympic appearance.
“TeamSerbia for #Paris2024 got new representatives,” the Serbian Olympic Committee wrote on X on Tuesday. “Tennis players Novak Djokovic and Dušan Lajović fulfilled the requirements, according to the ATP ranking, and confirmed their performance at the Olympic Games.”
Djokovic’s status for the Olympics was in the air after he withdrew from the French Open quarterfinals earlier this month with a torn meniscus in his right knee. Djokovic underwent surgery and appears to be on track to return to Roland-Garros, the clay court home of the French Open, for the 2024 Paris Games.
Djokovic, 37, suffered the knee injury during his Round of 16 match against Francisco Cerundolo at the 2024 French Open, but he still managed to win in five-sets. Despite moving on to the French Open quarterfinals, Djokovic made the “tough decision” to withdraw from the tournament.
“In the past day, I had to make some tough decisions after sustaining a meniscus tear during my last match,” he captioned a photo of him using crutches, alongside his team. “I’m still processing it all but I am happy to update you that the surgery went well... I’m going to do my best to be healthy and fit to return to the court as soon as possible. My love for this sport is strong and the desire to compete at the highest level is what keeps me going.”
It’s not clear if Djokovic will be able to compete at Wimbledon, which he last won in 2022. The first round of Wimbledon begins on July 1.
Djokovic is looking for the elusive Olympic gold medal. He won a bronze medal in his Olympic debut in Beijing in 2008, but lost bronze-medal matches in London in 2012 and Tokyo in 2021.
The Edmonton Oilers’ goal for Game 5 was to drag the Florida Panthers back to Alberta.
They succeeded.
Both teams are heading back on a plane for the 2,500-mile-plus flight to Edmonton as the Oilers forced a Game 6 with a 5-3 victory on Tuesday night.
Oilers captain and three-time NHL MVP Connor McDavid was the driving force again, getting two goals and two assists in Game 5 to give him eight points over the last two games as his team has staved off elimination twice.
“It was a total team effort, top to bottom,” McDavid told reporters.
Zach Hyman got his first goal of the final, Corey Perry scored his first of the playoffs after a tremendous stickhandling effort from McDavid and the Oilers’ special teams connected for two power-play goals and a short-handed one.
The Oilers are just the fourth team to force a Game 6 after losing the first three games of the Stanley Cup Final.
The Panthers pressed after falling behind 4-1 but couldn’t tie it up in the third period and McDavid scored an empty-netter.
The Panthers will try to end their two-game losing streak and wrap up their first Stanley Cup championship on Friday night (8 p.m. ET, ABC) at Edmonton’s Rogers Place.
“I’m not feeling deflated, neither is the hockey team,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice told reporters. “They’re not feeling deflated. A little grumpy.”
Game 5 winners
Connor McDavid, Oilers: He had another four-point game as he saved the Oilers’ season again. He beat Sergei Bobrovsky from a sharp angle and weaved through defenders to set up Corey Perry. McDavid has 42 points, fourth best all time and five points behind Wayne Gretzky’s 1985 NHL record.
Matthew Tkachuk, Panthers: He looked like the Tkachuk of old. He broke a nine-game goal drought, set up
Oliver Ekman-Larsson’s goal and dealt out six hits. His sliding stop on an Oilers empty net goal was impressive.
Evan Bouchard, Oilers: He had three assists to give him 26 this postseason, breaking Paul Coffey’s NHL record.
Game 5 losers
Panthers’ special teams: You can’t give up short-handed goals in back-toback games if you’re going to close out a series. The Oilers also scored two power-play goals and now have three after getting none in the first three games of the final.
Sergei Bobrovsky, Panthers: This is his second two-game losing streak of the playoffs. He has given up nine goals on 39 shots in those games. He gave McDavid just enough space on the Oilers captain’s first goal.
Carter Verhaeghe, Panthers: He had a -3 plus-minus rating for a third consecutive game and has one point in his last seven games. Maurice moved him back to the Aleksander Barkov line to try to get him going.