Djokovic withdraws from the French Open with an injured knee

Paris: Novak Djokovic withdrew from the French Open with an injured right knee on Tuesday, ending his title defense and meaning he will relinquish the No. 1 ranking.

The tournament announced the news, saying Djokovic has a torn medial meniscus in his right knee. The extent of the injury was found during an MRI exam a day after Djokovic was hurt during a

fourth-round victory against No. 23 Francisco Cerundolo that lasted five sets spread across more than 4 1/2 hours.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion was supposed to face two-time

French Open runner-up Casper Ruud in the quarterfinals on Wednesday.

Instead, Ruud gets a walkover into the semifinals, where he will face No. 4 Alexander Zverev or No. 11 Alex de Minaur.

Djokovic’s knee had been bothering him for a couple of weeks before he arrived at Roland Garros — something he kept to himself until after the win against Cerundolo. Early in the second set Monday, Djokovic tweaked his knee and took a medical timeout.

A trainer worked on the joint then and during subsequent changeovers, and Djokovic took what he said a tournament doctor told him was the maximum dose of pills allowed to dull the pain and reduce any

inflammation.