Djokovic confronts heckler
Tennis star wins in 4 sets
Defending champion Novak Djokovic confronts a heckler and challenged him to “say that to my face” during the fourth set of a testy second-round win Wednesday over Alexei Popyrin at the Australian Open. Before the start of the fifth game of the fourth set, Djokovic walked back behind the baseline and engaged with a spectator, gesturing to him to come down and “say that to my face.”
That match had been going for almost three hours by then, and Djokovic had dropped the second set and had to save set points in the third. After the outburst, he won three straight games to take the match away from the Aussie player en route to a 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (4) 6-3 victory.
Novak Djokovic was asked if it upsets him when there are ‘idiots’ in the crowd who go too far:
“It does. I’m not going to sit & say it’s all good. It’s not good. Of course, it upsets me. I’m frustrated. I don’t want to be experiencing that, but I have to accept it as it is.… pic.twitter.com/DzdaH88TJW
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) January 17, 2024
Sore wrist still lingering
He celebrated the victory after Popyrin made an error, turning towards the crowd and pumping his fist in excitement. Djokovic has been struggling with a sore wrist and expressed his discomfort after his first match, which was a four-hour, four-set win over 18-year-old qualifier Dino Prizmic. He acknowledged Popyrin’s strategy for disrupting his game.
Although he admitted to not being in the best shape, Djokovic, who is 36 years old, is still trying to regain his form. He understands that early-round matches pair him with opponents who have nothing to lose and therefore give their all on center court. Djokovic hopes to improve his performance as the tournament progresses.
Tsitsipas Struggles but wins
Stefanos Tsitsipas, who lost to Djokovic in the final last year, also faced difficulties against an Australian player on the adjacent court during the night session. In the fourth set, Tsitsipas had match points, but he had to save four set points to force a tiebreaker. He ultimately won the tiebreaker in a 4-6, 7-6 (6), 6-2, 7-6 (4) victory.
Novak Djokovic was down 4-5, 0-40 to Popyrin & won the set.
4 set points saved.
The entire stadium cheering against him.
But you’d be mad to think he wasn’t gonna pull it off.
It’s just who Novak is.
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) January 17, 2024