“An Unfortunate Warning”: Novak Djokovic Finds Frances Tiafoe’s Time Violation Harsh at Australian Open 2021

Serbia’s Novak Djokovic won his 2nd-round match against America’s Frances Tiafoe in Melbourne today. It took the Serb 3 hours and 30 minutes to seal the match in his favor.

He eventually beat the 23-year-old and won the match in 4 hard-fought sets, 6-3 6-7 7-6 6-3. During the match, there came a point when the American player was serving at 30-30 and received a time violation.

As a result, Tiafoe faced a penalty and ended up losing his first serve. At such a crucial situation, it added to his disadvantage and Novak capitalized on the moment. 

Novak Djokovic: “These kind of things are unlucky”

After the match, Djokovic reflected on that unfortunate juncture and stated, “He gave it his all and an unfortunate warning for him at 30-30 when I broke his serve, these kind of things are just unlucky.

“He deserved to have the first serve and to play it out all the way through. It is what it is and hopefully, he can have a great year.”

The Serbian ace considered his 2nd-round match win as high and expects the challenges to only get tougher as he endures farther in the competition. He admitted that he’s familiar with this kind of situation and is up for the challenges that awaits him. 

The 33-year-old, in an on-court interview, admitted, “The matches are only going to get tougher with higher seeds and opponents along the way. It’s not the first time I’m in this situation.

“I know how to handle this kind of circumstance but at the same time, I was fortunate to get through the third set today. It was really anybody’s game.”

With that win, the 2020 Australian Open champion moved into the 3rd round of the tournament. He will play the winner of the match between the 6’11” American, Reilly Opelka, and compatriot Taylor Fritz. 

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