“You have to be very careful,” Craig Tiley gives public ‘advise’ to Novak Djokovic and his family ahead of the Australian Open finals

Craig Tiley opens upon the alliance with the Novak Djokovic family on the "Russian fan" controversy.

“You have to be very careful,” Craig Tiley gives public ‘advise’ to Novak Djokovic and his family ahead of the Australian Open finals

Craig Tiley, Novak Djokovic family

Tennis Australia CEO and Australian Open Director Craig Tiley has opened up on the talks he had with Novak Djokovic‘s family after his father Srdjan Djokovic ended up in a controversy of posing a photo with a ‘Russian fan’. Djokovic’s father Srdjan was spotted with a Russian nationalist holding a flag with Vladimir Putin’s face and wearing a controversial ‘Z’ T-shirt at the Australian Open 2023. This has created an international furor with the Ambassador of Ukraine branding it a ‘disgrace’. 

Craig Tiley said, “I spent a lot of time talking with the Djokovic family. My advice is that you have to be very careful because this is an event of global importance. When you have hundreds of thousands of people passing through the gates, it is normal that there will be some people who come with the intention of being disruptive.”

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Continuing his train of thought, Tiley mentioned how the Djokovic family responded to the allegations and his advice, “They completely understand it. The family was very good. They were upset that everything was taken that way. There was no intention. His father does not particularly support the war, they are focused on supporting peace.” (Source: Kurir, translated via google)

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Also Read: John McEnroe gives his prediction for the “most balanced” Australian Open’s final

Novak Djokovic is doing everything right on the court despite the controversies

Srdjan Djokovic and Novak Djokovic

Novak Djokovic and his love for controversies is a never-ending story. How the Serbian ends up in allegations on an almost daily basis is still a mystery to be solved. This time, Srdjan Djokovic posing with the ‘Russian fan’ controversy popped up from nowhere. Djokovic’s relationship with Australia has always been a roller coaster ride. While he turns on the gladiator mode the moment he enters the tennis courts of this country, off-the-court doings have always made him on the backfoot there.

Amidst all the happenings off the court, the Serbian’s art of focusing on tennis is what makes him the champion he is. And he will go on to meet the Greek World No.4 Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Australian Open 2023 final as the firm favorite. With the way he crushed his previous round opponents, it is hard to see a fit Djokovic losing against the Greek on Sunday.

Stefanos Tsistsipas will have to play the best match of his life to have some chances in the finals. As he is yet to beat the Serbian after 2019, the mental pressure also will be immense for him. Even if the Greek is able to start the match well, he will have to get off the demons of the French Open 2021 final where Djokovic came back from 2 sets down to beat the Greek. The final score of that final was: 6-7(6-8), 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 in favor of Djokovic.

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