What Led The World No 1 Djokovic To Exit From US Open?

For the first time ever, 17-time grand slam winner Novak Djokovic has been making news for bad things as he was disqualified from the US Open after hitting a line judge with a ball.

The world No 1 accidently struck a line umpire in the throat by hitting a ball in her direction after losing the serve to his Spanish opponent Pablo Carreno Busta.

Djokovic left Flushing Meadows without speaking to the media, but did write an apology on his Instagram account, saying he was “extremely sorry to have caused her such stress.”

The ITF rulebook spells out what led to his disqualification: under the “physical abuse” section, players are penalized if the violation happens during a match.

Tennis legend John McEnroe believes that the incident will become ‘a stain he’s not going to be able to erase’.“Just when you think something crazier couldn’t happen [in 2020], it does happen,” he said. “We talked before the event that the only way Novak could lose is if he beat himself.

Meanwhile, Djokovic’s removal from the competition has ensured that for the first time since the 2014 US Open, there will now emerge a first-time men’s singles Grand Slam champion. Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer are not playing in the tournament.