Novak Djokovic was distracted by a fan during a crucial game, which nearly cost him the 3rd set against Taylor Fritz at the 2023 US Open.
It was a game where Djokovic was trying to confirm the break he got in the previous game. The confirmation would ensure him the 3rd set, which was the decisive one as he led 2-0 at the time. The point happened at a deuce with the fan distracting Djokovic, who miscalculated the trajectory of the ball.
He would lose the point, giving Fritz a break point, and he wasn't happy about it. A missed forehand gave Fritz a break, but the American dropped his serve in the next game, nullifying all of that and allowing Djokovic to close it out in three sets. Djokovic was naturally asked about it after the match.
Yeah. Yeah, he did (smiling). He was actually in the box where some of my friends were. I don't know who the guy was, but yeah, I was pretty annoyed by him at that point. I was communicating with my friends to have a little chat with him.
We've seen players deal with all kinds of things during the US Open, with the celebrations between services most notable. When players face Americans, every missed first serve is greeted with cheers by the crowd, which obviously isn't tennis etiquette but as Djokovic explained, it's something you have to be ready for.
I mean, look, it happens. Sometimes you react, but most of the time you don't. I speak for myself. Obviously there is whatever percent of the time you don't react. People speak, they move around. You've got to be ready for that, particularly in US Open, especially in the night sessions.
Djokovic will have to deal with that in his next match as he's facing native player Ben Shelton for a spot in the final. Expect a pretty hostile crowd.
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