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“Not Acceptable”: Novak Djokovic Slams US Open 2020 for Lack of Communication

Published 09/01/2020, 6:40 AM EDT

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USA Today via Reuters

World No.1 Novak Djokovic kicked off his pursuit of the 18th Grand Slam as he beat Damir Dzumhur 6-1 6-4 6-1 in the first round of the US Open 2020. This match notched another win to Djokovic’s unbeaten record to 24-0 in 2020. But in a fairly easy match, Djokovic was frustrated and agitated with how things were proceeding.

One thing that agitated Djokovic involved the serve clock. Now Djokovic played and won the Western & Southern Open, which was held in Flushing Meadows and came to an end two days ago.

But it has been noted that the chair umpires in the US Open are starting the 25-second serve clock much earlier than they did in the Western & Southern Open. And that hasn’t gone down well with some of the players.

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“The lack of communication is something that worries me once again” – Novak Djokovic

And so, after the match, Djokovic spoke about the matter. He raised the issue of lack of communication between the players and the organizers. He further claimed that players had set themselves to play in a certain tempo when they played in the Western & Southern Open, and the change can be annoying. The Serbian called the change in the rule as ‘not acceptable’ and ‘not fair’.

“I was not aware of it. No one really brought it to my attention. The lack of communication is something that worries me once again.” Djokovic said.

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“We’ve played in the certain tempo, got used to it during the Western & Southern tournament, which just ended two days ago. Two days later we have a different rule that was just not communicated to us.

“That’s something that I found just not acceptable, not fair. But I guess I have to deal with it, and that’s it,” he added.

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“Was Frustrated With My Game”: Novak Djokovic on His First Round Victory at US Open 2020

Moving into the 2nd round, Djokovic will play former British no.1 Kyle Edmund. In his first-round match, Djokovic looked in ease and doesn’t seem to have neck issues that vexed him during the Western & Southern Open.

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Written by:

Bhavishya Mittal

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Bhavishya Mittal is a tennis author for EssentiallySports, who is currently pursuing his Bachelor's degree in Journalism from Manipal University. A former sports editor for The Manipal Journal, Bhavishya has also worked for The New Indian Express. He has a keen eye for many sports but he is a particularly ardent follower of tennis, with a zest to create riveting articles on the ever-evolving sport.
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