Djokovic Involved in Ball Incident at Australian Open
Novak Djokovic was involved in an incident during his third-round match at the Australian Open against Botic van de Zandschulp. Djokovic hit a ball towards a ballgirl, with the ball passing close to her.
Chair umpire John Blom addressed Djokovic regarding the action.
Grand Slam Rules on Ball Abuse
The grand slam rulebook outlines specific prohibitions regarding player conduct with the ball:
Players "shall not violently, dangerously or with anger hit, kick or throw a tennis ball within the precincts of the tournament site except in the reasonable pursuit of a point during a match (including warm-up)."
It defines abuse of balls as:
"intentionally hitting a ball out of the enclosure of the court, hitting a ball dangerously or recklessly within the court or hitting a ball with negligent disregard of the consequences."
Previous Incident at US Open
This incident follows a previous event at the 2020 US Open, where Djokovic was defaulted for hitting a line judge with a ball during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta.
Djokovic's Grand Slam Pursuits
Djokovic is seeking to extend his record of 24 grand slam titles and has won the Australian Open 10 times.