Novak Djokovic was booed off court by some Australian Open fans after retiring injured from his semi-final against Alexander Zverev.
Djokovic, who was bidding for a record-extending 11th title, quit after losing the first set 7-6 (7-5) in 80 minutes.
The 37-year-old Serb had his upper left leg heavily taped after injuring it in Tuesday’s quarter-final win over Carlos Alcaraz.
“I did everything I possibly could do to manage the muscle tear that I had,” said Djokovic, who was also aiming for an all-time standalone record of 25 major titles.
“Towards the end of that first set I just started feeling more and more pain. It was too much to handle for me,” he added.
After he slapped a volley into the net on set point, seventh seed Djokovic immediately approached Zverev and shook his hand.
He waved to the crowd and gave them a double thumbs up, despite audible boos from some sections inside Rod Laver Arena.
Asked by Serbian media about the reaction, Djokovic said: “I don’t know what to say. People have come and paid for the tickets expecting a great match and a big fight, which they didn’t get. From that perspective, I can understand. I am doing my best to understand them, but I am not sure whether they understand me or if they even want to.”
German second seed Zverev is still bidding for his first Grand Slam title after twice losing in major finals.
He will face world number one and defending champion Jannik Sinner in Sunday’s final after the Italian beat Ben Shelton.
In the women’s semi-final, Madison Keys saved a match point before stunning world number two Iga Swiatek to set up an Australian Open final against two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka.
Keys claimed a shock 5-7 6-1 7-6 (10-8) victory over five-time Grand Slam champion Swiatek to reach the second major final of her career.
Swiatek’s loss also means Sabalenka will retain the world number one ranking after the tournament.
Top seed Sabalenka previously described Badosa as her “soulmate” but she successfully put aside their off-court relationship to continue her pursuit of a third successive triumph at Melbourne Park.
Sabalenka, winner of both the Australian Open and US Open last year, quickly went a break down against Badosa, and the Spaniard was within a point of taking a 3-0 lead.
But Sabalenka emphatically hit back, winning 12 of the next 16 games to record her 20th straight victory at the tournament.
Sabalenka, later seen consoling Badosa in the players’ area, said: “It was a super tough match against a friend, I’m super happy to see her at her highest level.”
While Keys has achieved a career-best Australian Open run, Sabalenka is aiming to emulate Martina Hingis’ three straight titles between 1997-99.
“I have goosebumps. I am so proud of myself and my team that we were able to put ourselves in such a situation,” Sabalenka said.
“If I put my name in history it will mean the world for me. I couldn’t even dream of it.”
