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Monte-Carlo 2024: Novak Djokovic Controversy Prompts Andy Roddick to Make a Serious Demand on Biased Move

Published 04/14/2024, 9:32 AM EDT

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Novak Djokovic is currently feeling the heat from the trophyless run this year. It seems as if he’s standing in the middle of a barren desert searching for an oasis. He wants to savor the taste of his first title in the 2024 season. And yet, controversies never seem too far from this tennis star. He was recently knocked out of the Monte Carlo Masters by Casper Ruud in the SF. But more than the defeat, his rude behavior towards a fan during the match has caught all the limelight in the tennis world.

American tennis legend Andy Roddick recently appeared on the Tennis Channel Live podcast, where he spoke about that incident when Novak Djokovic lost his temper and yelled, “Shut the f*** up!” at one of the fans in the stands. After that incident, chair umpire Mohamed Lahyani urged fans not to call out during a rally. But he refrained from issuing a verbal warning to Novak Djokovic.

Andy Roddick brought up this moment saying, “If someone yells curse words at the crowd, I don’t care who it is, Novak or whoever doesn’t matter, I’ve certainly done it and that should be a warning.

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Roddick highlighted the lack of consistency that has been seen this week surrounding the officiating in this prestigious tournament in Monte Carlo. Previously Holger Rune was involved in a similar incident and the Danish tennis star even got penalized after that.

The lack of a title is clearly getting to Novak Djokovic, who said, “Not having a title is — compared to the last 15 years — not a great season at all.” Even the last time when Novak Djokovic stepped onto the court at the Indian Wells, there were some controversies. Even at that time, Andy Roddick was there opposing Djokovic for his “desperate” actions.

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“It’s a desperation move” – Andy Roddick criticized Novak Djokovic for his actions at Indian Wells

Italy’s Luca Nardi created a historic moment of his career last month by defeating Novak Djokovic 6-4,3-6,6-3 in the second round of the Indian Wells. But even there more than the result of the match, Novak Djokovic’s questioning the youngster at the net after the match following a controversial incident came to the headlines.

During the second set, Nardi seemed to be a bit surprised by an “in” call. And he casually hit the ball back over the net. It created confusion among the minds of both the players and Djokovic claimed Nardi “literally stopped” before taking the shot creating a potential hindrance. But the chair umpire said, just because Luca Nardi stopped it “Doesn’t mean the point stops.

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After seeing this whole incident, Andy Roddick said, “It’s a desperation move. I don’t see any world where Novak [Djokovic] should ever be desperate against someone ranked 123 in the world. One, the guy didn’t stop. Like, you watch it, he didn’t stop.” Roddick alleged that even Novak Djokovic used to stop between the points during the early phases of his career. The only difference between the above incident and this incident is that Andy Roddick was in line with the officials at Indian Wells.

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Written by:

Sayantan Roy

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Sayantan Roy is a Tennis Writer at EssentiallySports, who crafts tennis tales that not only capture the game's essence but also reflect his creative genius. As a believer in unbiased journalism, Sayantan, a fan of both Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal, loves to fuse the world of such tennis rivals and present balanced copies as fan reaction pieces. Engaged in sports since college, he brings that passion to life.
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Edited by:

Arunima Bhanot