Novak Djokovic chose to skip his on-court post-match interview after his Sunday third round win over Jiri Lehecka at the Australian Open, later explaining that it was because of comments made by Australian broadcaster Channel 9's Tony Jones.
Jones reportedly made fun of Serbian fans chanting for Djokovic during a match, and he shouted back: "Novak is overrated ... Novak’s a has-been ... Novak kick him out," according to Tennis.com. Channel 9 and Jones have yet to apologize to Djokovic and the Serbian fans, and Djokovic made it clear he will boycott talking to them until they issue an apology.
“Couple days ago. the famous sports journalist who works for official broadcaster, Channel 9 here in Australia, made a mockery of Serbian fans and also made insulting and offensive comments towards me,” Djokovic said as his press conference. “And since then, he chose not to issue any public apology. Neither did Channel 9. So, since they're official broadcasters, I chose not to give interviews for Channel 9.”
Djokovic clarified his decision has nothing to do with the American broadcasting team and Jim Courier, who he would've also given an on-court interview with.
“I have nothing against Jim Courier or neither the Australian public,” Djokovic said. “It was a very awkward situation for me to face on the court today. It's unfortunate I chose to say something to the crowd, but obviously wasn't the time and space or situation for me to explain what I'm doing right now. I leave it to Channel 9 to handle this the way they think they see fit. That's all.”
The 24-time major champion later posted a video to social media explaining a bit more of his reasoning. He essentially repeated what he had said in his press conference, doubling down on his apology to Courier.
A few words about what happened on court. pic.twitter.com/jRof2npiwH
— Novak Djokovic (@DjokerNole) January 19, 2025
We'll see if Channel 9 or Jones apologize to Djokovic before his quarterfinals match on Tuesday vs. Carlos Alcaraz, one where fans would definitely want to hear from Djokovic afterwards.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Novak Djokovic Skips On-Court Interview After Australian Broadcaster's Negative Comments.
