Novak Djokovic has been dragged into the ongoing Davis Cup controversy.
An incident involving the tennis icon five years ago has been compared to the altercation which ended a tie between Belgium and Chile.
The qualifiers first round tie at the weekend ended in contentious circumstances as Cristian Garin of Chile was disqualified.
Garin had been facing Zizou Bergs when his opponent barged into him as he ran to celebrate with his team-mates.
The Chilean protested the umpires call to hand Bergs a code violation before refusing to continue.
His tirade ultimately saw him receive a point and game penalty which handed Bergs victory and meant Belgium claimed the match.
The incident has now been compared to Djokovic’s own infamous exit from the 2020 US Open.
After swiping a ball away in frustration during his fourth round match against Pablo Carreno Busta, the Serbian accidently struck a lineswoman.
Djokovic was defaulted from the tournament as a result of the incident.
Former world number one Andy Roddick has compared the two scenarios and claimed Djokovic should have ‘hit the opponent’.
Speaking on his Served podcast, Roddick explained: “I will say, had Bergs done it to an umpire, he’d have been gone. But apparently you can do it to another player and it’s fine.”
Co-host Jon Wertheim added: “If Novak Djokovic taps a ball and it happens to hit a lineswoman and he says, ‘listen, I didn’t intend anything’. It doesn’t really matter what his intent is.”
This prompted Roddick to quip: “Yeah, he should’ve just hit the opponent.”
Georgian player Nikoloz Basilashvili also referenced Djokovic as he reacted to the incident on social media.
He wrote: “If Novak had done this, he would have been disqualified for life. WTF.”
Chile’s Olympic committee have since expressed their ‘upset and incredulity’ over the incident against Belgium.
Meanwhile, Garin later addressed the incident in both his post-match press conference and in an Instagram post, as he admitted he felt ‘devastated’.
Belgium’s win means they have advanced to the qualifiers second round and will face Australia in September for a place in the Final 8.
As for Chile, they enter World Group 1 for the conclusion of this year’s Davis Cup.
