Video has emerged of former No.1 receiving mystery drink at the Aussie Open.
Serbian tennis champion Novak Djokovic’s brave run to the Australian Open finals with an injured leg has been tempered by fresh accusations he could have broken tournament rules, Daily Mail reported.
It came during a match where he surrendered the second set and needed a medical timeout for his troublesome hamstring before going on to victory.
His team are seen putting a label on the water bottle before giving it to a tournament official to hand to Djokovic on court.
The former world No.1 carefully read what was written on the label when he received the bottle.
The footage has thus raised concerns that Djokovic and his team could have broken rules governing when and where players can be coached during the Open.
Stars are allowed to communicate verbally with their team only when they’re on the same side of the court. If they’re on opposite sides, signals must be used – which was the case when the footage of Djokovic was taken.
It is the third time in six months that the 21-time grand slam winner has courted controversy with his choice of drink at a tennis tournament. The incident comes after Djokovic suffered a shock defeat to Danish teenager Holger Rune in the Paris Masters in November, after which a video of his physiotherapist mixing him a drink dominated headlines.
The physio was caught on camera mixing a mystery drink in the stands before handing it to a ball girl to pass along to the Serbian champion.
Another member of Djokovic’s team used his back to try and obscure vision of what was going on.
Tennis fans have their say on the revelation, some thought the liquid itself wasn’t a problem, but the note that was attached to the bottle could be.
‘Coaching notes perhaps?’ one fan suggested. Others said it could be a sponsorship-related issue.
‘A product made by a company that doesn’t sponsor him so they’re covering up the label,’ one fan said.
Others have been quick to defend Djokovic of anything untoward, saying nobody would be brazen enough to consume a banned substance in plain sight.
‘Too much attention on a team member mixing sports drinks,’ one fan wrote.
‘A proper ridiculous notion that something is up, stadium full, cameras everywhere, drinks mixed in players box … I mean use a little logic here, maybe just maybe they don’t want to give the edge to anyone.
