Novak Djokovic booed off court after retiring due to shoulder injury
Novak Djokovic was booed off Arthur Ashe Stadium at the US Open in Flushing, New York on Sunday night for retiring from his match due to injury.
Djokovic has been battling a shoulder injury for the past month or so and has been receiving treatment for it. He even said after his second round match that the shoulder had been affecting him.
The world No. 1 player dropped the first set of his fourth round match with Stan Wawrinka 4-6 and blew a 4-1 lead in the second set to lose 7-5. Down two sets to none in the best-of-five match, Djokovic decided he could no longer continue after falling behind 2-1 in the third. During the side change, Djokovic said he was done and congratulated Wawrinka on the win.
Perhaps upset with Djokovic for quitting early rather than playing out the set, fans booed the Serbian star.
After retiring against Stan Wawrinka Novak Djokovic is booed by tennis fans in New York at Arthur Ashe Stadium. Harsh. #USOpen pic.twitter.com/kakrRWm2Q7
— Omar Moore (@thepopcornreel) September 2, 2019
The 16-time major winner was looking to repeat at the US Open this year, but it wasn’t to be. He still was able to win his seventh Australian Open and fifth Wimbledon, so 2019 was positive for Djokovic in terms of majors.
This is the second time recently we’ve seen a star athlete get booed. Do you think he deserved it?