Essential Novak Djokovic Facts For Any Tennis Fan

May 2024 · 2 minute read

As one of the best tennis players in history, Novak Djokovic has a temper to match his ego, and at the 2020 U.S. Open, he pushed things too far. Djokovic was one win away from eclipsing Rafael Nadal and three away from surpassing long-time rival Roger Federer. However, things came to a halt when Djokovic broke against Pablo Carreño Busta and, in a fit of anger, whacked the ball backward. Unfortunately, the rogue ball didn't go spinning off as Djokovic no doubt intended. Instead, he hit the nearby line judge in the throat, per The Guardian.

Although the judge, Laura Clark, wasn't seriously injured, Djokovic was in a world of trouble, as he faced disqualification and numerous other penalties. And according to the Daily Mail, his plea for leniency went unheard. "She doesn't have to go to the hospital for this," he reportedly said. "You're going to choose a default in this situation?"

Djokovic later offered an apology via Instagram. "This whole situation has left me really sad and empty," he wrote, adding that he would turn the disqualification into a lesson for growth. But it was too little, too late for the ill-tempered pro. Djokovic was defaulted — tennis-speak for disqualified — stripped of the $250,000 prize money he'd earned throughout the U.S. Open up to that point, fined an additional $10,000 for unsportsmanlike conduct, and lost any rankings he'd attained during the tournament (per The New York Times).

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