Djokovic fumes at umpire in rain-affected Rome opener | Inquirer Sports

Djokovic fumes at umpire in rain-affected Rome opener

/ 04:46 PM May 12, 2021

Novak Djokovic tennis ITalian Open

Tennis – ATP Masters 1000 – Italian Open – Foro Italico, Rome, Italy – May 11, 2021 Serbia’s Novak Djokovic after winning his second round match against Taylor Fritz of the U.S. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane

ROME—World number one Novak Djokovic was furious with the chair umpire for not suspending play as rain trickled down during his Italian Open second-round match against American Taylor Fritz on Tuesday.

The 33-year-old Serb made his feelings clear after he was broken when serving for victory in the second set.

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“How much do you wanna play?,” Djokovic yelled at umpire Nacho Forcadell. “I asked you three times, you are not checking anything.”

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The match was eventually suspended for three hours before Djokovic secured a 6-3 7-6(5) victory. All the other men’s matches for the day were canceled.

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Djokovic said he had been struggling with the court conditions before the players were sent off the court at 5-5 in the second set.

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“It’s not the first time or probably the last that I’m going to experience such conditions,” Djokovic, who has received an opening-round bye this week, told Amazon Prime.

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“And even with that much experience behind me I still get upset and lose my cool. But it’s OK. At the end of the day these are great lessons – I will try and take away some important things from this day.”

Djokovic was disqualified from last year’s U.S. Open after accidentally hitting a female line judge with a ball during his fourth-round match against Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta.

Chasing a sixth title in Rome, Djokovic will play the winner of the match between Britain’s Cameron Norrie and Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the round of 16.

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TAGS: Italian Open, Novak Djokovic

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