A “hindrance”, a “horrible call” or “an echo off the roof”?
The umpire’s decision to dock Novak Djokovic a point for an extended grunt in his Wimbledon semi-final provoked disbelief from the player and pundits.
He was given the penalty in the second set when umpire Richard Haigh deemed the noise had hindered Jannik Sinner.
Serbia’s Djokovic, who went on to win, angrily asked the umpire “what are you doing?” and said the call “could have changed the course of the match”.
“I felt nervous after that call, but I managed to regroup,” Djokovic said after reaching Sunday’s final, where he will go for a record-equalling eighth men’s Wimbledon singles title.
“It’s probably the first time it’s happened to me.”
Former Wimbledon champion John McEnroe said it was a “horrible, horrible call”, adding the umpire had “wanted his name in the paper”.
The decision came in the second set while Djokovic served with a 2-1 lead and gave Sinner an advantage at 15-30.
The Serb grunted after stretching to hit a backhand but Sinner still returned the ball close to the baseline.
Djokovic initially looked stunned before he approached the umpire to debate the decision. Later in the same game, he was given a time warning but composed himself to hold serve before closing out a 6-3 6-4 7-6 (7-4) win.
“He handled it admirably – way, way better than most players,” McEnroe said on BBC TV.
“I would have hated if that was a turning point.
“Horrible, horrible call. Sinner’s ball went back in court and dropped foot from baseline. How much of a hindrance could it have been?
“It is one thing if Sinner lifts his game, that’s great, but not when the umpire gets in the middle of it. Obviously, this umpire wanted his name in the paper. Fortunately, Novak held. It would have been a shame.”
Former British number one Tim Henman called it “bizarre”.
“So rarely do you see a hindrance, sometimes in doubles if they are talking you might get it, but in a situation like this, in the semis of a Grand Slam, it was so unexpected.”
Djokovic was impressive throughout the match as he secured a fifth successive Wimbledon final, where he will meet Carlos Alcaraz or Daniil Medvedev.
He added: “I don’t normally have extended grunts. Maybe it was an echo in the roof. It was a call that I have to respect.”
British player Liam Broady tweeted that it was a “horrendous” decision.
“Not saying it wasn’t a hindrance but I’ve never seen a grunt called for a hindrance and every player has done that at least once a tournament,” he said.
“The extended grunts and the strangely timed grunts happen ALL. THE. TIME. And they never get called. Strange time to take a stand on an elongated grunt!?”
American world number nine Taylor Fritz added: “I can’t speak to this specific instance because I didn’t see it.
“Novak doesn’t come to my mind when I think of this rule, but some players I can think of extend/delay grunts A LOT on big points to put you off and it needs to be called more by umpires.”
