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Novak Djokovic was left extremely furious with his team after they failed to get their attention during a changeover in the first set of his Australian Open quarterfinal against Taylor Fritz.
On Tuesday, defending Australian Open champion Djokovic and world No. 12 Fritz made a grueling start to their match at Melbourne Park. Djokovic, seeded at No. 1, was creating break point opportunities but he wasn't converting them as Fritz saved 8-of-8 of the Serb's break point chances in the first set.
After not converting any of his three break points in the very first game of the match, Djokovic also missed out on three more break points in the third game. In the ninth game, Djokovic had two consecutive break points but again failed to convert.
During a changeover, Djokovic seemingly wanted some tips or advice from his team. But when he looked in their direction, they weren't looking at his direction. Djokovic then started throwing his hands around and yelling in an attempt to be noticed by his team.
On air, Patrick McEnroe called out Djokovic's team by stating: "You had one job, that's it!"
Novak Djokovic is upset with his team at the changeover.
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) January 23, 2024
He was having a hard time getting their attention.
Patrick McEnroe commentating: “You had one job!” 😂
pic.twitter.com/BAQf68CvNZ
In the end, Djokovic managed to win a thriller of a first set with a 7-6 (3) scoreline after an hour and 26 minutes of play. Djokovic then lost the second set but managed to recover and get the job done in four sets 7-6 (2) 4-6 6-2 6-3 and reach the semifinal at Melbourne Park.
Djokovic blows a kiss to Nick Kyrgios
Kyrgios, who lost to Djokovic in his first Grand Slam final at 2022 Wimbledon, has been showing love to the Serb throughout this year's Australian Open. Kyrgios, a Eurosport analyst and commentator for this year's Australian Open, was covering Djokovic's match.
After winning a 21-point rally to go 6-1 up in the first-set tie-break, Djokovic turned to Kyrgios' direction and blew a kiss. The crowd loved it and the act also drew a smile on Kyrgios' face.
We are totally here for this bromance - Novak Djokovic blows a kiss to Nick Kyrgios in the commentary booth 😘#AusOpen pic.twitter.com/sPgmMFFLXe
— Eurosport (@eurosport) January 23, 2024
Following a four-set win against Fritz, Djokovic was interviewed by Kyrgios on the court. Kyrgios, who is currently out due to his ongoing wrist injury, received some nice words from Djokovic, who praised his commentary work but also wished him a speedy return to tennis.
"Great to see you. Looking good in that booth. But looking better here. Hopefully with a racket also soon. We miss Nick. Come on, guys. Show him some love," Djokovic said.
Djokovic admits he felt 'uncomfortable' in the first two sets
The playing conditions weren't the best and Djokovic appeared to be impacted a bit by the heat and humidity. The very first game of the match lasted just over 15 minutes, which was undoubtedly a draining start to the match for both Djokovic and Fritz.
In the end, the opening set ended up lasting nearly an hour and a half. After managing to win a grueling first set, Djokovic suffered the first break of the match in the opening game of the second set. In the remainder of the set, Fritz saved a total of eight break points to win the second set and level the match to one set apiece.
Djokovic bounced back impressively after losing the second set, breaking Fritz in the second and eight games to easily win the third set and go up by two sets to one. In the fourth set, Djokovic broke Fritz in the sixth game but got broken back instantly in the following game. However, Djokovic kept his focus and broke Fritz again in the eighth game before serving out for the match in the ninth game.
After the match, Djokovic was asked if the conditions made him feel uncomfortable in the first two sets and if his goal was to hang on until the conditions get a little bit cooler.
"Yeah, you could say so. I mean, I was looking forward to have the full shade on the stadium (smiling). It was a hot day. Obviously we started with a 16-, or 17-minute first game which took a lot out of us both players, and very close first set. Just physically grueling rallies," Djokovic said.
"He was, yeah, making me uncomfortable on the court because he was very aggressive. He served great. He was staying close to the line, taking the ball early, you know, making me, you know, run. I was oftentimes on the back foot.
"So credit to him for playing really well. You could see that he had a clear game plan. He was really sharp. So it was definitely a struggle, you know, for me to play the first couple sets.
"Then I think in the third things started to come together. I started to swing through the ball better. I started to feel better on the court and serve. Serve, also. I wasn't serving well at all first two sets, and then third and fourth, great. I think I maybe even served more aces than him, which is a surprising stat, considering he has one of the best serves around."
For a place in the Australian Open final, Djokovic will play against Jannik Sinner for the seventh time in his career. Going into the match, Djokovic owns a 4-2 head-to-head against Sinner.