Novak Djokovic’ Dramatic U.S. Open Exit Continues Year Of Controversies For Tennis Star

February 2020During a hard-fought Australian Open final which he won, Djokovic engaged in an angry exchange with the chair umpire Damien Dumusois and then tapped him twice on the shoe, later saying: “You made yourself famous in this match. Great job. Especially in the second one. Great job.” Facing a A$30,000 fine for touching a match official, Djokovic apologized after the game saying, “Of course, I’m not happy I touched the chair umpire,” but insisted it was a “friendly touch.”

April 2020As the coronavirus pandemic put a stop to all major global sports including Tennis, the Serbian star once again courted controversy by expressing anti-vaxxer views in a T.V. interview in his home country stating: “Personally I am opposed to vaccination and I wouldn’t want to be forced by someone to take a vaccine in order to be able to travel,” adding that he will “have to make a decision” if the vaccine is made compulsory. He later released a statement saying that he wasn’t an expert on the issue and was “keeping an open mind.”

June 2020Djokovic organized a tennis tournament in the Balkans even as other major sporting events around the world remained shut due to the pandemic. Djokovic, his wife Jelena, three other players, three coaches and one player’s pregnant wife, got infected and tested positive for Covid-19, leading to the competition—which had seen packed stands—getting canceled. Djokovic issued a statement after the cancellation saying sorry the tournament “caused harm,” however, a few weeks later, he struck a more combative tone saying the “malicious” criticism he had faced was unfair and that he had been the victim of a “witch hunt”.

August 2020On the eve of the U.S. Open, Djokovic led a group of male players including Vasek Pospisil and John Isner in resigning from the ATP Player Council to form the breakaway Professional Tennis Players Association, which claimed it would help players “have their voices heard.” Djokovic was not followed by fellow top stars including Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, who sided with the ATP’s call for “unity” and Andy Murray who cited the absence of female players behind his decision to not join. The move to form a player’s body without any women players led to criticism of Djokovic with some highlighting Djokovic’s past opposition to equitable pay for women players.

September 2020The world number one and top seed was disqualified from the U.S. Open after striking a ball in frustration and accidentally hitting a lineswoman in the throat, who cried out and fell to the ground after being hit. The incident occurred during the first set of his fourth-round match against Spain’s Pablo Carreño Busta which Djokovic was trailing 5-6, following which he was defaulted by the tournament referee ending his pursuit for an 18th Grand Slam Title. Djokovic issued a statement on Instagram after the match saying, the whole situation had left him “really sad and empty” adding “I checked on the linesperson 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.”