The end result of Saturday’s third-round match at Wimbledon between Novak Djokovic and Kyle Edmund was hardly the story. Djokovic prevailed in mostly routine 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 fashion in a contest that was plagued by controversy.
First, during his post-match press conference the 21st-ranked Serb called the crowd “unfair” in its support of the Brit. Second, a point midway through the fourth set caused a stir throughout the All-England Club–and beyond.
With Edmund serving down break point at 3-3, 15-40 in the fourth set, Djokovic struck what appeared to be a forehand drop-volley winner. Edmund returned it for what was called a winner of his own, but Djokovic’s shot clearly bounced twice.
Chair umpire Jake Garner awarded the point to Edmund even though the underdog should have lost it three different ways:
1. the ball bounced twice
2. Edmund ran into the net before his shot bounced twice on Djokovic’s side
3. Edmund’s shot was wide
“I was 100 percent convinced (about the double-bounce), but everyone can makes mistakes,” Djokovic commented. “It was a very important point. I told the chair umpire that it’s not possible for him to play that shot if it doesn’t bounce twice. It doesn’t make any sense.”
Next up for 31-year-old on Manic Monday is Karen Khachanov, while Edmund was the last Brit to exit Wimbledon and will join the “unfair” English crowd in its support of the national football team. England plays Croatia in the World Cup semifinals on Wednesday.
[polldaddy poll=10050113]
Leave a Reply