Novak Djokovic was at the centre of controversy at the 2020 US Open.
Djokovic had not lost a single match heading into the US Open in a Covid-19 interrupted 2020 season, where he was the huge favourite to win the title with both Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer absent.
The Serbian was on a 26-match winning streak heading into his fourth round match against Pablo Carreno Busta, before Djokovic was disqualified after unintentionally, but carelessly, hitting a ball into the throat of a line judge.
There was a huge reaction to this, which included John McEnroe being critical of Djokovic for one thing in particular.
John McEnroe criticised Novak Djokovic for not speaking to press after US Open disqualification
McEnroe spoke to ESPN about Djokovic’s disqualification at the 2020 US Open, where he claimed that he was going to be ‘the bad guy’ for the remainder of his career and admitted that he was amazed by his ‘bone-headed’ actions.
“The pressure just got to him,” said McEnroe. “I think a lot has been going on off the court. It’s obviously affected him and whether he likes it or not, he’s going to be the bad guy the rest of his career.
“If he embraces that role, I think he could recover. He’s got a lot of things going for him, but this is a stain that he’s not going to be able to erase.”
McEnroe added, “I’m just amazed, amazed that he did something as bone-headed as that in a situation where he was the overwhelming favorite.
“It’s about how will he deal with this moving forward? What type of reaction will he get from the other players? What type of reaction will he get when fans start coming back to the sports arenas? These are all issues that you don’t know the answers to.”
Djokovic did not speak in a press conference after the match, instead opting to release a statement on social media.
This was something that McEnroe was particularly critical of, claiming that it was ‘not good enough’ from Djokovic.
“You’ve got to man up. It made no sense to me,” stated McEnroe. “In the past I’ve seen him take responsibility when he’s blown it. In this case it makes it even worse. So what if he apologised on Twitter… that’s not good enough.”
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What did Novak Djokovic say in his statement after being disqualified at the US Open?
Djokovic released a lengthy statement on social media after his US Open disqualification, where he said he was ‘extremely sorry’ to the linesperson and was hoping to learn from his actions.
“This whole situation has left me really sad and empty,” Djokovic wrote on Instagram at the time. “I checked on the lines person and the tournament told me that thank God she is feeling ok.
“I‘m extremely sorry to have caused her such stress. So unintended. So wrong. I’m not disclosing her name to respect her privacy.
“As for the disqualification, I need to go back within and work on my disappointment and turn this all into a lesson for my growth and evolution as a player and human being.
“I apologize to the @usopen tournament and everyone associated for my behavior. I’m very grateful to my team and family for being my rock support, and my fans for always being there with me. Thank you and I’m so sorry.”
This is the only time that Djokovic has been disqualified from a professional tennis match in his entire career.
Djokovic will be hoping to keep it this way, as he continues his bid for a 25th Grand Slam title at this year’s US Open.
