Adelaide exhibition: Novak Djokovic withdraws due to minor physical issue but then reappears to win a set against Jannik Sinner

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic initially pulled out of the exhibition event in Adelaide, just minutes before he was due to take on Jannik Sinner on Friday. But the 17-time Major winner then decided to play after his replacement Filip Krajinovic won the first set of the match.

Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Dominic Thiem, Serena Williams, Simona Halep, Naomi Osaka and Venus Williams are among those playing the 'A Day at the Drive' exhibition event in Adelaide. Djokovic, however, had blisters on his right hand, so he decided against taking the court right off the bat for the match with Sinner.

By the time Filip Krajinovic won the first set against Jannik Sinner, Novak Djokovic was seemingly well enough to play for a bit. The Serb went on to win the second set 6-3 and end the contest.

Novak Djokovic addressed the crowd after the match in an on-court interview, thanking them for coming out to support the players. He also spoke about his reasons for not taking the court at the start of the match.

"I'm sorry that I didn’t step on the court from the beginning," Djokovic said. "I had to do some treatment with my physio and I wasn’t feeling my best the last couple of days. I didn’t know how I was going to react, but I wanted to play, I wanted to get out here."

"It's not easy (to play with a blister) but it is part of what we do," the Serb added. "We're professional athletes and we learn over the years to play with pain and it's just a question of whether that pain is bearable or not."

Novak Djokovic then went on to explain why he returned for the second set against Jannik Sinner, insisting that the presence of the crowd in the stands was too much for him to resist.

"Coming off a hard training block and having the ATP Cup and Australian Open around the corner, you don't want to risk it too much," Djokovic said. "The emotion was so strong in me to come out on the court today to see full stands and I just had to play."

Novak Djokovic goes for a walk in the local park after exiting the quarantine

Filip Krajinovic and Novak Djokovic chat during the 'A Day at the Drive' exhibition tournament

Earlier in the day, Novak Djokovic went for a walk at a local park following the end of his two-week quarantine in Adelaide. Djokovic even took some time out to pose for pictures and sign autographs with fans at the park.

Djokovic then spoke to some of the media members present at the park, asserting that it felt great to be out after ending his quarantine.

"I forget how that feels. It’s great to be out. It was worth it," Djokovic said. "14 days, we have to do it and it was fine here. We trained well and had four-and-a-half hours of the day of fresh air to get training in."