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‘Totally Unacceptable’ – Despite Novak Djokovic’s Late Night Extravaganza, Journalist’s Lonely Walk Leaves Fans Concerned at ATP World Tour Finals

Published 11/15/2023, 9:50 AM EST

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The Day 3 of the ATP World Tour Finals saw one of the most thrilling contests in recent years at the tournament. Local hero, Jannik Sinner, held his nerves to overcome the challenge of World Number 1, Novak Djokovic. It was a see-saw battle that was decided in the final set tiebreaker. The match lasted for over three hours and went late into the night. As a result, one of the journalists faced a torrid time after the match.

The journalists are also a part of the game and the tournament arrangements affect them too. This journalist had to take a lonely walk at 1:30 AM in the night to her hotel as no transport was available. Subsequently, fans were left concerned with the situation.

Fans react as a journalist faces trouble after the match of Novak Djokovic

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The journalist in question, Ella Ling took to her Twitter handle to share the unfortunate situation she had been in following the match between Djokovic and Sinner. Since no transport was available nor did the tournament provide any transport, she had to walk alone to her hotel at 1:30 AM. Hearing this, fans expressed sympathy while lashing out at the ATP.

via Reuters

One of the fans said, “Press should and must have transportation! We finish late every night and we need to be sure to be back home safe. This problem has to be solved quickly. Good to know you are back home.”

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Another journalist shared a similar situation, revealing, “I was always terrified of missing the last shuttle at the US Open. I figured I’d sleep in the media room. I’m sure some people have. Crazy that you had to work past the time of the transportation desk.”

Another journalist shared that sentiment, saying, “Been in similar situations and this is not on! Hope the tournament rectify this.”

Meanwhile, one fan lashed out at the ATP and said, “Totally unacceptable Are you fixing this @atptour?”

One of the tennis bloggers sympathized with the journalist, saying, “Ensuring accreditated media get arranged transport to ensure they get home safely has to be a mandatory requirement. It’s so sad that a sport that generates so much revenue still can’t look after it’s people they need to keep the sport going. Hope you got home safe @EllaLing23.”

Late-night finishes have taken a fair share of criticism of late. Recently, Jannik Sinner called out the poor scheduling of his matches at the Paris Masters.

DIVE DEEPER: ‘I Would Bench Rafa’ – Dominic Thiem Makes Preferences Clear With His Novak Djokovic Claim

Jannik Sinner faces difficulty in late-night matches

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The Italian star was forced to withdraw midway from the Paris Masters as he was devoid of adequate rest after his second-round match finished late at night. Subsequently, he called out the tournament authorities over poor scheduling.

Sinner said, “It’s not easy to go on the pitch after midnight, it’s very late. Now I just have to try to sleep and recover…” Late-night matches have become a common trend across tournaments as they earn significantly greater viewership than compared to day matches. As a result, the revenue earned increases.

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Nonetheless, Sinner has come back strongly at the ATP World Tour Finals. He looks like a strong contender to lift the title in his home country. It’ll be interesting to see how he performs in his upcoming matches.

WATCH THIS STORY: Serena Williams Pays Tribute to Roger Federer

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Written by:

Vatsal Shah

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One take at a time

Being a die-hard fan of tennis and an ardent follower of Rafael Nadal, tennis has been a part of my life even before I ventured into sports journalism. If I have learned anything from the incredible career of the ‘King of Clay’, it is to constantly enhance your skill sets, no matter at what stage you are in your career. This motivated me to complete an Executive Post Graduate Diploma in Sports Management while pursuing my career as a sports writer.
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Edited by:

Shudh.mukherjee