Novak Djokovic advanced through to the fourth round at the Australian Open after a straight sets win over Botic van de Zandschulp on Saturday night.
Djokovic, however, nearly saw his run at the Australian Open come to an end, but not because of his level of play on the court.
After winning the first set and leading in the second set 4-2, Djokovic won a rally over van de Zandschulp to even the score in the game at deuce. As Zandschulp’s shot sailed long, Djokovic angrily smashed the ball and narrowly avoided hitting the ball girl who was positioned by the side of the net.
Novak Djokovic nearly hit a ballkid while smashing the ball away against Botic Van de Zandschulp.
— edgeAI (@edgeAIapp) January 24, 2026
Had it hit the ballkid he would be looking at a possible disqualification..
Umpire didn’t give out a warning.pic.twitter.com/0l9SjKAECX
“I apologize for that. That was not necessary,” Djokovic said at his post-match presser. “In the heat of the moment I… yeah, I was lucky there. I’m sorry for causing any distress to the ball kid or anybody.”
Novak Djokovic apologizes for almost hitting the ball kid with a ball during his match against van de Zandschulp at Australian Open:
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) January 24, 2026
“I apologize for that. That was not necessary. In the heat of the moment I… yeah, I was lucky there. I’m sorry for causing any distress to the… pic.twitter.com/Q84rWZAhlo
Djokovic could have potentially been disqualified had the ball struck the ball kid. The 24-time major winner nearly violated Article III: Player On-Site Offenses, Section N of the International Tennis Federation’s Official Grand Slam Rule Book, which states the following:
“Players shall not violently, dangerously or with anger hit, kick or throw a tennis ball within the precincts of the tournament site except in the reasonable pursuit of a point during a match (including warm-up) … For the purposes of this Rule, abuse of balls is defined as intentionally hitting a ball out of the enclosure of the court, hitting a ball dangerously or recklessly within the court or hitting a ball with negligent disregard of the consequences.”
A default, or disqualification, for a single offense from a player is rare in tennis, for they generally are a result of a series of escalating code violations. But Djokovic has been famously defaulted at a Grand Slam tournament once before.
Djokovic defaulted from 2020 US Open after inadvertently hitting line judge in throat with ball
While changing ends during a fourth round match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the 2020 US Open, Djokovic, undoubtedly frustrated that he was trailing 6-5 in the first set, angrily smacked a ball behind him. The ball hit the line judge, who fell to the ground as she grabbed at her neck.
Djokovic was defaulted after a 10-minute discussion involving the chair umpire, tournament referee, and Grand Slam supervisor.
He later took to social media to apologize to the line judge.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Novak Djokovic Apologizes for Nearly Hitting Ball Kid at Australian Open.
