US Open 2020: Novak Djokovic Disqualified From Tournament After Hitting Line Judge

World number one Novak Djokovic was disqualified in the fourth round of the US Open on Sunday, September 6. The Serbian star accidentally hit a lineswoman with a ball during his match against Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta. The woman who was hit on the throat was seen gasping.

Check out the viral video here:

Here’s what he did. #Djokovic pic.twitter.com/iVjP5UG7ER

— Greg Brady (@gregbradyTO) September 6, 2020

Novok went 5-6 down in the first set to Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta. Reportedly in frustration, he angrily smacked a ball behind him. The ball flew right at the line judge, who dropped to her knees at the back of the court and reached for her neck. Novok Djokovic soon rushed over to the line judge to check that she was okay. He even apologized for the incident.

A discussion of about 10 minutes took place near the net involving tournament referee Soeren Friemel, Grand Slam supervisor Andreas Egli and chair umpire Aurelie Tourte. Novok Djokovic pleaded his case.

“His point was that he didn’t hit the line umpire intentionally. He said, ‘Yes, I was angry. I hit the ball. I hit the line umpire. The facts are very clear. But it wasn’t my intent. I didn’t do it on purpose.’ So he said he shouldn’t be defaulted for it,” said Friemel, who made the decision to end the match. “And we all agree that he didn’t do it on purpose, but the facts are still that he hit the line umpire and the line umpire was clearly hurt.”

The umpire declared that Carreno Busta had won by default. Djokovic shook hands with Carreno Busta before leaving the court. Djokovic quickly left the tournament grounds without speaking to reporters, posting an apology on social media hours later.

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This whole situation has left me really sad and empty. I checked on the lines person and the tournament told me that thank God she is feeling ok. I‘m extremely sorry to have caused her such stress. So unintended. So wrong. I’m not disclosing her name to respect her privacy. As for the disqualification, I need to go back within and work on my disappointment and turn this all into a lesson for my growth and evolution as a player and human being. I apologize to the @usopen tournament and everyone associated for my behavior. I’m very grateful to my team and family for being my rock support, and my fans for always being there with me. Thank you and I’m so sorry. Cela ova situacija me čini zaista tužnim i praznim. Proverio sam kako se oseća linijski sudija, i prema informacijama koje sam dobio, oseća se dobro, hvala Bogu. Njeno ime ne mogu da otkrijem zbog očuvanja njene privatnosti. Jako mi je žao što sam joj naneo takav stres. Nije bilo namerno. Bilo je pogrešno. Želim da ovo neprijatno iskustvo, diskvalifikaciju sa turnira, pretvorim u važnu životnu lekciju, kako bih nastavio da rastem i razvijam se kao čovek, ali i teniser. Izvinjavam se organizatorima US Opena. Veoma sam zahvalan svom timu i porodici što mi pružaju snažnu podršku, kao i mojim navijačima jer su uvek uz mene. Hvala vam i žao mi je. Bio je ovo težak dan za sve.

A post shared by Novak Djokovic (@djokernole) on Sep 6, 2020 at 3:58pm PDT

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