Tennis: Novak Djokovic sensationally ejected from US Open for line hitter

Top-seeded Novak Djokovic was sensationally suspended in his fourth-round match at the US Open after he accidentally hit a linesman with a tennis ball.

It was an impressive ending to Djokovic’s bid for an 18th Grand Slam title and his 26-0 start to this season.

Djokovic had just lost a game to his opponent, Pablo Carreño Busta, to fall behind 6-5 in the first set.

As he walked to the sideline for the change, Djokovic hit a ball behind him. The ball hit a linesman, who fell to her knees at the back of the court and reached for her neck.

After a several-minute discussion with officials on the court, including tournament referee Soeren Friemel, Djokovic stepped up to shake Carreño Busta’s hand. Chair Umpire Aurelie Tourte later announced the breach.

It seemed clear that Djokovic had no intention of hitting the linesman; There was concern written on his face as soon as he realized what had happened. But players who hit a ball out of anger and make contact with a referee on the court have been defaulted in the past.

Djokovic’s mood had soured in the previous minutes. In the previous game, he blew three break points in a row and after the last one, which Carreño Busta won with a drop shot, Djokovic hit a ball on a billboard on the court.

Then, at the second point of what would become the last game at this year’s US Open for Djokovic, he tripped while chasing a shot and fell to the ground, clutching his left shoulder.

The game was delayed for a few minutes while a coach checked that shoulder.

In the second point after they resumed, Carreño Busta hit a winning pass to break Djokovic’s serve. That’s when Djokovic got into trouble.

His departure means there are no men left on the field who have previously won a Grand Slam singles title. Whoever emerges as champion will be the first major trophy winner in men’s tennis since 2014, when Marin Cilic won the US Open.

– AP