Australian Open Day 9 Wrap: Djokovic Sparks Controversy, Sinner Fights Through Heat; Swiatek Dominates
The Australian Open saw its fair share of drama on Monday, as Novak Djokovic found himself at the center of yet another controversy, Jannik Sinner battled through intense heat to advance, and Iga Swiatek cruised to an easy victory.
In a day filled with tension, Djokovic, the 24-time Grand Slam champion, declined to participate in a routine on-court interview after his victory over Jiri Lehecka. The Serbian star expressed his discontent towards Tony Jones, a prominent sports presenter for Channel Nine, who had made derogatory remarks about Djokovic, labeling him a “has-been” and suggesting he should be “kicked out” of the tournament. In response to Jones’ comments, Djokovic stated that he would boycott interviews with the broadcaster until he received a public apology.
The fallout from this incident reached far beyond the court, with Djokovic’s video explanation garnering over 60 million views on social media, even catching the attention of Elon Musk. Musk commented, “It’s way better just to talk to the public directly than go through the negativity filter of legacy media,” to which Djokovic replied, “Indeed.”
Tennis legends, current players, and even Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese weighed in on the situation. Later in the day, Jones apologized on air, and Tennis Australia confirmed that Djokovic accepted the apology and would now focus on his upcoming quarter-final against Carlos Alcaraz.
While Djokovic dealt with the media storm, Sinner, the world No. 1, faced his own challenges on the court. Battling oppressive temperatures that soared above 30 degrees Celsius (86 Fahrenheit), the Italian needed medical attention during his match against Danish 13th seed Holger Rune. Despite struggling with dizzy spells and a visible hand tremor, Sinner fought through the discomfort to secure a 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory, earning a place in the quarter-finals.
In a heart-wrenching twist, American teenage qualifier Learner Tien’s dream run came to an end due to a thigh injury, as he fell to Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego in four sets. Tien had previously shocked the tennis world with a thrilling upset over Daniil Medvedev in the second round, but his hopes were dashed in this latest match.
Ukrainian star Elina Svitolina also made headlines, defeating Veronika Kudermetova 6-4, 6-1 to advance to the quarter-finals. Svitolina, however, chose not to shake her opponent’s hand in light of the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia, a stance that has drawn attention and respect from the tournament organizers, who displayed notices to the audience explaining the situation.
Svitolina will next face American 19th seed Madison Keys, who advanced after overcoming former finalist Elena Rybakina in a hard-fought three-set match. Meanwhile, Frenchman Gael Monfils, Svitolina’s husband, was unable to continue his match against American 21st seed Ben Shelton, retiring while trailing two sets to one.
