“That might seem a little suspicious,” Novak Djokovic’s former coach brushes off ‘baseless’ allegations regarding Serb’s Australian Open win
Novak Djokovic claimed his 10th Australian Open title last week, after defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas in the finals.
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Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic claimed an unprecedented 10th Australian Open title in Melbourne last week. The new world number one defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets to level Rafael Nadal’s tally of 22 Grand Slam titles. Despite nursing a minor hamstring injury all through the tournament, the Serb was operating at his highest level in the last couple of rounds.
Novak Djokovic is never far enough from a controversy, and this time it was no different. The Serbian was subject to a lot of allegations after he received a mysterious bottle from his team during his quarterfinal victory over Andrey Rublev. The bottle seemed to have a small note inside it. Although on-court coaching has been banned, yet minor tweaks in the legislation mean that there are several grey areas.
Earlier in the tournament, Novak Djokovic raised some eyebrows when he received a water bottle with a note during his second round encounter with Enzo Couacaud. The Frenchman was the only player who managed to take a set off from the world number one at the Australian Open 2023.
Also Read: Tommy Paul reveals Reilly Opelka’s contribution in brilliant Australian Open run
Novak Djokovic’s former coach defends the Serbian following Australian Open triumph
Novak Djokovic’s former coach, Shaugnessy has defended the Serbian following his 10th Australian Open title. He stated that players carry a lot of stuff in their kit bags, when they enter the court. Hence, it is often that they forget some important things, which in Novak’s case was the electrolytes. Shaugnessy further added that receiving electrolytes from his coaching team was perfectly within the rules, and he sees no reason as to why this should turn into a controversy.
“Players already carry a lot on the field with them, bag, rackets etc… And many times they don’t really know what is going to happen. They don’t know what electrolytes they will need. This is completely normal and completely within the rules,” Shaugnessy mentioned.
“In matches that are played practically day after day it is quite normal for the coaching staff, especially for the physiotherapist to invent something during the match and give it to Novak. If you’re not familiar with the inner workings of tennis, that might seem a little suspicious, but it’s not at all. There is literally zero suspicion for a physical therapist to make a drink and hand it over. It happens all the time,” said Shaugnessy.
Novak Djokovic has started off the season in a spectacular manner, winning back to back titles in Australia. The Serbian claimed the Adelaide Open title last month, which was followed by his 10th Australian Open title last week. The 35-year-old also reclaimed the world number one spot from Spanish prodigy, Carlos Alcaraz who missed the first Slam of the year owing to an injury.
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Nirmit Mehta
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