Wimbledon star declares ‘I need to change my underwear’ as match brought to sudden stop | Tennis | Sport

Hubert Hurkacz tried to leave the court after being taken to a decider in his fourth-round match, telling officials he needed to “change [his] underwear”. The Polish star seemed to pick up an injury at 5-5 in the fourth set while facing Jan-Lennard Struff on the No. 2 Court, an outdoor showcourt with no roof.

He had to leave in the middle of the game to receive treatment from the physio. But when he returned, Hurkacz continued to grimace and quickly lost the next two games to lose the set. Ahead of the decider, the world No. 96 repeatedly asked if he could leave the court to get changed, and argued that it was “too dark” to play on. His requests went unanswered, and he was ultimately forced to retire in the middle of the fifth set, bringing the match to an abrupt end.

Hurkacz had led Struff by two sets to love before the 36-year-old German started to mount a comeback. And deep in the fourth set, the Pole suddenly found himself in trouble. He winced after hitting a serve at 5-5 and immediately sat at his bench, asking to see the trainer.

The physio came out to the court and asked the umpire and other officials: “Can we take him off court, do some treatment? It’s a different problem.” The former world No. 6 added: “I cannot play. There is no chance.” Hurkacz was allowed to leave for an off-court medical timeout in the middle of the game. And soon, neither player was on the court, as Struff used the break to rush to the bathroom.

The world No. 96 returned from his medical treatment and played on, but was clearly in pain and got broken to lose the set. With light fading on the outside court, Hurkacz then tried to take another break, and then argued that it was too dark to play. “I need to change clothes. No, I went only once. I went just once. Call the supervisor. I went only once. Call the supervisor,” he told the umpire. “I need to change clothes. No, I need to change the underwear. I cannot… I need to change the – And it’s too dark.”

Commentators weren’t having it, and told viewers: “No, no. Nice try. It’s not too dark. No, no. That’s nonsense. The supervisor will come out. That’s nonsense.” Struff wasn’t having it, either, and went to the baseline to start the fifth and final set as the umpire called time.

Hurkacz was forced to play on, though he initially didn’t seem bothered when he broke to start the set. Still, the former semi-finalist never looked comfortable and continued wincing. Struff immediately broke back, and the Polish star called the physio again during the next two changeovers.

Struff then had more break points at 3-2. It became clear that Hurkacz couldn’t continue, and he barely tried to win points. After getting broken, he finally threw in the towel. The 29-year-old walked straight to the net to shake hands with Struff, allowing the German to advance to his first-ever Grand Slam quarter-final 3-6 6-7 7-6 7-5 4-2 ret.

It’s heartbreak for Hurkacz, who suffered a career-threatening knee injury on the exact same court in the second round here two years ago. He attempted to play through the rest of the 2024 season but entered a few tournaments and struggled to find form, clearly still struggling.

The former No. 6 initially came back stronger in 2025 but was forced to withdraw from Wimbledon and the US Open after undergoing arthroscopic surgery to finally fix his knee issues. Hurkacz dropped out of the top 100 just a few weeks ago as he struggled to find form after returning to competition in January.

After breaking new ground at the Grand Slams at the age of 36, Struff paid tribute to his injured opponent. “Hubie is one of the nice guys on four for me, and to end it like that is a pity,” he told the crowd. “It’s very tough. It was also tough, I felt like, in the fourth set, the serve speed went a bit down. After he got treatment, it was very difficult in the fifth set. He broke me with unbelievable shots and I needed to stay focused. All the best to Hubie.

“I’m very happy, but yeah, the end was pretty rough. But I mean, yeah, it’s just incredible, I would say. Like I said before, 36 years old, fourth round [here] for the first time, quarter-final of a Grand Slam first time. You should never give up.”

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