Djokovic challenges fan in testy win

Already sick and tired in another early round slog, Novak Djokovic unloaded on a heckler who crossed the line at the Australian Open.

Defending champion Djokovic angrily challenged the spectator to “say that to my face” and gestured to the man to come down onto the Rod Laver Arena court, the venue for 10 of his record 24 Grand Slam titles.

He then went on a roll, winning three straight games from 2-2 in the fourth set before finishing off Alexei Popyrin 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (4) 6-3.

The 36-year-old Serb then turned to the crowd again and yelled, pumping his fist to celebrate the victory.

Asked later what triggered his rage, Djokovic responded: “I mean, you don’t want to know.”

“I was tolerating it for most of the match. At one point I had enough,” he said. “He didn’t have the courage to come down. That’s what I was asking him: ‘If you have courage, if you’re such a tough man, tough guy, come down and tell it to my face.’”

That didn’t happen. Djokovic didn’t ask for the man to be removed. Stadium security didn’t intervene.

Djokovic moved on to the third round, still simmering a little bit about the episode.

“I’m not going to sit and say ‘it’s all good.’ It’s not good,” he said. “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.

“Sometimes I don’t tolerate when somebody crosses the line. That’s it.”

Djokovic has been dealing with a sore wrist and said after his opening match — a four-hour, four-set win over 18-year-old qualifier Dino Prizmic — that he hasn’t been well. He was struggling against Popyrin, who is ranked 43rd.

So, was it the kind of spark that he needed?

“Look, I don’t want to be in those types of situations. Yeah, I was flat I guess emotionally. Game-wise I was quite flat,” he said. “Maybe that was needed for me to be shaken up a bit and start to find the kind of intensity that I needed to have all match.”

“Look, I don’t want to be in those types of situations. Yeah, I was flat I guess emotionally. Game-wise I was quite flat,” he said. “Maybe that was needed for me to be shaken up a bit and start to find the kind of intensity that I needed to have all match.”

This article was first published on nzherald.co.nz and is republished here with permission