The disqualification of Novak Djokovic at US Open 2020 sent a shock wave across the bubble in Flushing Meadows. No one, let alone Djokovic, saw it coming. All day, different players have been giving their thoughts on the incident. Naomi Osaka has joined the chorus as well.

Some players watched the incident, and some heard about it in the press conferences after their matches. Meanwhile, some slept in the comfort of their rooms while chaos ensued in Arthur Ashe Stadium. One of them was Naomi Osaka, who said after the match that she did not watch the incident as she was sleeping. She also said that the incident changes the way players will react going forward.

Naomi Osaka reveals she slept through the incident

However, just hearing about everything that happened has made her more aware.

“Yeah, I mean, definitely, of course. For me, even like not seeing that, because I wasn’t watching the match live because I was sleeping,” Osaka said after her fourth-round win.

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“But knowing that, of course, I think puts a little bit of – what’s it called – you’re more aware of it, of course,” she added.

The effect of the disqualification of Novak Djokovic

Djokovic’s incident is a rare one that no one could have seen coming. However, in tennis, many players have a tendency to smash their racquets and even throw them around. If they’re having a bad day as Djokovic did on Sunday, the racquet could end up anywhere, hurting anyone.

Osaka said that she tries her best not to slam her racquet. But, in general, players will be a lot more aware of the possible consequences of such actions in the future.

“For me, I try not to slam my racquet anyway. Of course, I probably do a couple times. But I definitely think it’s making people a bit more aware.”

The tournament referee Soeren Friemel later clarified that the fact that Djokovic’s shot was unintentional does not matter. He hit the ball in anger and it ended up injuring a match official. The rules on disqualification are clear in such cases.

Top male players Alexander Zverev and Denis Shapovalov also highlighted how unlucky Djokovic was that the ball hit the lineswoman directly. Shapovalov himself was on the receiving end of disqualification at the Davis Cup in 2017 for a similar incident.