Djokovic receives warning as child retrieves racket thrown into crowd

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Novak Djokovic was given a warning by the umpire after he threw his tennis racket into the crowd in frustration in the semi-final of the Astana Open. The Serbian was handed a free pass into Sunday’s final, where he will now face Stefanos Tsitsipas after Daniil Medvedev was forced to withdraw midway through the closely-contested spectacle.

Yet despite the walkover, there was irritation throughout for Djokovic who endured a slow start against his Russian opponent, who took the opening set.

In the closing stages of the second set, Djokovic was locked in a rally with his opposite number who eventually earned a point after moving the 21-time Grand Slam champion around the court.

Djokovic then tossed his racket – reasonably gently – into the crowd, before it was later returned to him by a young fan.

He cut a regretful figure as he patiently waited for it to return, raising his hand before looking down at the court indicating it was purely accidental.

The umpire was willing to show some leniency, although he did hand Djokovic a warning that was not well-received by the 35-year-old.

“Ridiculous. You’re telling me it’s not a warning, but then you give me a warning,” he could be heard saying.

It’s not the first time Djokovic has thrown his racket into the stands. The same happened at the Tokyo Olympics except there were no fans present due to COVID-19 regulations.

The difference was, there was pure anger involved on that occasion as Djokovic would go onto smash another racket before later skipping his double matches.

Djokovic was also disqualified from the 2020 US Open after accidentally hitting a line judge with a ball that was not in play.

The game was nicely positioned for a thrilling final set before the World No 7 Medvedev was forced to pull out of the contest.

Tsitipas now stands in Djokovic’s way before glory in Astana and the Greek recorded a fine 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 comeback victory in his semi-final meeting with Andrey Rublev.

The duo have met nine times in the past with Djokovic winning seven of those encounters which includes the final of the Italian Open earlier in the year.

Should Djokovic reign supreme, it would be his third consecutive triumph of the season following previous victories at Wimbledon and in Tel Aviv.

Tsitipas is also hunting a third trophy following previous success in Mallorca and at the Monte Carlo Masters.

Djokovic revealed his surprise at Medvedev’s retirement, stating he was fully prepared for a final set showdown with his opponent.

He said: “I’m still surprised that he retired from the match, he looked completely fine maybe the last maybe 7/8 points I’ve seen him move maybe slightly slower but it’s a shock. Honestly, I was ready for a three-set battle. I really hope his injury is not that serious.”

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