Djokovic protests against Wimbledon roof decision during quarter-final
Novak Djokovic launched an angry protest at Wimbledon officials after accusing them of applying the tournament’s roof rules inconsistently during his epic quarter-final victory over Felix Auger-Aliassime, reports BritPanorama.
The seven-time Wimbledon champion was visibly frustrated when officials decided to close the Centre Court roof despite daylight still remaining, interrupting a gripping contest that ultimately stretched to almost five hours.
Djokovic eventually kept his pursuit of a record 25th Grand Slam singles title alive with a dramatic 7-6, 3-6, 6-3, 6-7, 7-6 (10-4) victory, booking a mouth-watering semi-final against world No 1 Jannik Sinner. However, one of the biggest talking points came away from the rallies.
With the match level at one set apiece, officials ordered the roof to be closed shortly before the third set, despite sunset not being due until later in the evening. Television cameras captured Djokovic confronting referee Denise Parnell as he questioned both the timing of the decision and the consistency of Wimbledon’s approach.
“Why now? The other day you didn’t want to close it until like 8.30 but now you want to close it?” Djokovic said. “You don’t want to get to 8.30? It’s 7.40 now, we could play a whole new set in that time.”
Djokovic continued, “I don’t care what happened with other matches – I’m talking about now. In the first round you didn’t close it until like 8.20 and now you want to close it at 7.40? Where’s the consistency? You guys are so proud of your rules and you’re not sticking to any kind of rules. We have no idea what the rule is. This is an outdoor tournament.” Auger-Aliassime was also understood to have preferred the roof remaining open. Sunset in London was officially recorded at 9.17pm, meaning the decision to close the roof came well before natural light had disappeared.
Former Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt backed Djokovic’s complaints while analysing the incident, saying, “Rightly so, you can play another set in 40 minutes. Novak is right, every other night they’ve played to a certain point.” The disagreement failed to derail Djokovic, who survived one of the toughest tests of his campaign.
The Serbian had appeared on course for victory after moving two sets to one ahead, only for Auger-Aliassime to force a deciding set in a contest dominated by powerful serving and relentless baseline exchanges. Djokovic eventually prevailed in a dramatic 10-point final-set tie-break, wrapping up victory just six minutes before Wimbledon’s 11pm curfew.
The result also preserved an extraordinary record; he has not lost at Wimbledon after leading by two sets to one since his defeat to Mario Ancic in 2006. There was further concern for Djokovic when he appeared to suffer a lower-leg problem during the match, but the 39-year-old recovered to seal another memorable Centre Court victory.
Sinner, who had comfortably defeated Jan-Lennard Struff earlier in the day, will now stand between Djokovic and another Wimbledon final. After the match, Djokovic admitted the physical toll of the marathon encounter was enormous. “These are the moments that I still play tennis for,” he said.
“I wish it was the final so that I don’t have to worry about how my body will feel tomorrow. But I’m happy. It was honestly one of the best matches I’ve been a part of on this court. I have no energy left. I have to recover, I’m still in the tournament, and I have the best player in the world in two days’ time.”
As tennis fans look ahead to a highly anticipated semi-final, Djokovic’s passionate defence of the sport’s integrity has added yet another layer of intrigue to the tournament. His ability to channel frustration into focus on the court serves as a reminder that even in the heat of competition, the pursuit of fairness remains vital in the game.
