Novak Djokovic fell to a shock defeat in the third round of the Indian Wells 2024 against Luca Nardi on Monday. To add insult to injury, he invited the wrath of fans on social media after arguing with the chair umpire.
After lucky loser Nardi surprised everyone by bagging the first set, Djokovic began the second set with good momentum. He broke to go 2-0 up, and it was during his serve late in the third game when the argument with the chair umpire happened.
Novak Djokovic sent down a service that Luca Nardi seemingly assumed would go out. Hence, the Italian stopped in his tracks, randomly hitting it back like it was a fault and the serve was not in play anymore. However, the service was legitimate, and no official called it out. Nardi’s casual return crossed the net, and Djokovic rushed to play a drop shot.
The Serb, however, stood still after playing the drop shot even as Nardi’s winner whizzed past him. Djokovic was not happy with his opponent ceasing to play during a legitimate point. The chair umpire remarked that just because he stopped does not mean the point has stopped. The World No.1 contended that it should be called a hindrance since it confused him after which he also stopped and lost the point. He said Nardi thought the ball was out and just stood, which put him off.
The chair umpire refuted Djokovic’s arguments, saying Nardi’s actions are not sufficient to constitute a hindrance. The World No.123 would have faced a penalty had he vocally called it out or made some disrupting gesture to suggest so. However, as per the umpire, simply standing and not playing the serve properly is not grounds for hindrance. Djokovic did not argue further and walked away in a huff.
Fans criticise Novak Djokovic for claiming hindrance
The video of this interaction spread like wildfire on the internet after official ATP broadcaster Tennis TV shared it on X (formerly Twitter). Most fans slammed Djokovic, saying there was no basis to his argument and he was totally wrong. They also praised the umpire for handling the situation well and explaining the rules perfectly. Former doubles World No.1 Rennae Stubbs also echoed the sentiment, saying Djokovic was wrong.
Some social media users further mocked Novak Djokovic, calling him ‘unlikeable’ and a ‘sore loser’.
