COURT DRAMA

Djokovic’s Dad Skips Semifinal After Pro-Putin Protest Uproar

Srdjan Djokovic said he would instead watch his son’s match “from home.”

Novak Djokovic’s father said on Friday that he wouldn’t be attending his son’s Australian Open semifinal match after he triggered international controversy by posing with pro-Putin protesters at the tournament. Srdjan Djokovic, 62, appeared to say “long live the Russians” in a video shot at the tournament while standing alongside a Russian flag-waving man wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with a pro-war “Z” symbol. Russian flags and iconography have been banned at the Australian Open after they were used to mock a Ukrainian player, and the incident involving Srdjan Djokovic sparked widespread condemnation. “I am here to support my son only,” the elder Djokovic said in a statement on Friday. “I had no intention of causing such headlines or disruption. So there is no disruption to tonight’s semi-final for my son or for the other player, I have chosen to watch from home.” Serbian ace Novak Djokovic beat America’s Tommy Paul for a spot in the Grand Slam’s final.