"Grigor Dimitrov inflicted damage to us as a family in Serbia" - When Novak Djokovic's father blamed Bulgarian for COVID-19 spread during exhibition
Novak Djokovic's father, Srdjan, has often found himself in the spotlight for the wrong reasons, and 2020 was no different. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he raised eyebrows by blaming his son's colleague Grigor Dimitrov for spreading the virus and "damaging" the image of their family.
The controversy unfolded during the early stages of the pandemic in June 2020 at The Adria Tour. The tournament was a series of exhibition tennis matches organized by Djokovic, held in several Balkan cities, including Belgrade, Serbia, and Zadar, Croatia.
It was intended to promote tennis and raise funds for charity, but it became infamous for its lack of safety measures. Thousands of spectators packed the venue, with no social distancing observed during the matches.
Dimitrov was the first player in the Adria Tour to test positive for COVID-19. Shortly after, Borna Coric, Viktor Troicki, and Djokovic, along with his wife Jelena, followed suit.
In the wake of that, Srdjan Djokovic blamed Dimitrov for the outbreak, suggesting he was responsible for spreading the virus during the event. He claimed the Bulgarian arrived in poor health and infected others without proper precaution.
"Why did it happen? Because that man probably came sick, who knows from where. He didn’t test here, he tested somewhere else … I think that’s not fair," Srdjan told RTL Croatia TV.
"He inflicted damage to both Croatia and to us as a family in Serbia. Nobody is feeling well because of this situation," the 63-year-old added.
Read: 3 times Novak Djokovic's father Srdjan landed himself and his son in controversy
Novak Djokovic: "I am so deeply sorry our tournament has caused harm"
The Adria Tour was abruptly called off following the news that Grigor Dimitrov, Viktor Troicki, Borna Coric, Novak Djokovic, and his wife Jelena had tested positive for COVID-19.
The Serb later issued a statement on X (formerly Twitter), expressing regret over the tournament’s negative impact. He clarified that he and the organizers' actions were driven by a "pure heart" and "sincere intentions."
"I am so deeply sorry our tournament has caused harm. Everything the organizers and I did the past month, we did with a pure heart and sincere intentions," Djokovic wrote.
"We believed the tournament met all health protocols and the health of our region seemed in good condition to finally unite people for philanthropic reasons. We were wrong and it was too soon. I can't express enough how sorry I am for this and every case of infection," he added.