Ukraine's Marta Kostyuk reacts in disbelief to Novak Djokovic's father expressing pro-Russian sentiments at the Australian Open
Novak Djokovic's father, Srdjan Djokovic, has reportedly been accused of expressing pro-Russian sentiments during the 2023 Australian Open, and Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk was shocked to hear the same.
Djokovic played against Russia's Andrey Rublev in the quarterfinals of the Grand Slam Down Under on Wednesday (January 25). After the Serb won the match, his father was spotted posing for pictures alongside Russian supporters holding pro-Vladimir Putin flags and wearing t-shirts displaying the now notorious "Z" symbol (which is considered an emblem of support for Russia's invasion of Ukraine) outside the premises of Rod Laver Arena.
In light of the incident, Kostyuk took to Twitter on Thursday (January 26) to express her disbelief. She was utterly surprised by Srdjan's gestures.
🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯 twitter.com/jamesgraysport…
A video was put out on YouTube on Thursday which revealed Srdjan accompanying the group holding the flag, as the supporters went on to state:
"We send you our greetings. From Melbourne, Australia, to our brothers in Moscow."
To worsen the situation, the 21-time Grand Slam champion's father appeared to say "Zivejli Russiyani" to the supporters, which has been translated by the channel as "Long live the Russians." Srdjan's actions have received widespread criticism as many have accused him of harming the sentiments of millions of innocent Ukrainians living all around the world.
Considering Russia's annexation, Tennis Australia, prior to the tournament, had made it clear that Russian flags will be banned from stadium premises. Therefore, strict actions have been taken against the Russian supporters who broke the law. As per the latest reports, the group has been detained by the police.
"Four people in the crowd leaving the stadium revealed inappropriate flags and symbols and threatened security guards. Victoria Police intervened and are continuing to question them. The comfort and safety of everyone is our priority and we work closely with security and authorities,” stated the Australian Open.
Novak Djokovic was interrupted by a heckler during his quarter-final match at the Australian Open
While Srdjan had to deal with criticism off the court, his son Novak Djokovic was forced to deal with aggressive comments on the court from fans during his quarter-final match with Andrey Rublev.
Both Djokovic and Rublev were forced to stop playing on several occasions during the quarterfinals due to a certain heckler. Chair Umpire issued a warning to them frequently during the course of the match.
Reflecting on the heckler's comments during his on-court interview, the World No. 5 conveyed that he felt angry when they started to raise certain comments intentionally to provoke him.
"If somebody starts making comments that are not related to support of the other player, he just wants to provoke and insult, then stepping over the line is something that I react to," said the 35-year-old.