Novak Djokovic disqualified from U.S. Open after hitting linesperson with ball

Djokovic was the top seed in the 2020 U.S. Open.

Novak Djokovic’s run in the 2020 U.S. Open is over after being ejected during the first set of his round-of-16 match against Pablo Carreno Busta. Djokovic was defaulted after hitting a ball toward the baseline which struck a linesperson.

Here’s video of the incident, which shows Djokovic hitting the ball in frustration after a point. He pled his case to officials who stuck with their ruling and disqualified him from the tournament.

Striking an official is grounds for an automatic ejection, which Djokovic received. Here’s a look at the full rule:

Djokovic was the top-seed in the tournament and the heavy favorite to win with long-time rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal opting out of playing in the tournament. Djokovic was undefeated in 2020 entering the U.S. Open.

Here are pictures of the woman Djokovic hit with the ball:

Djokovic made the following comment while arguing he should be allowed to continue in the tournament.

Pablo Carreno Busta now advances to the next round, where he’ll play the winner of Denis Shapovalov vs. David Goffin.