The incident with Novak Djokovic being struck on the head by a bottle after his second-round victory over Corentin Moutet at the Italian Open has caused quite a stir. Despite the accidental blow to his head, Djokovic reassured his fans that he was “fine” and thanked them for their support: He said: “Thank you for the messages of concern. This was an accident and I am fine resting at the hotel with an ice pack. See you all on Sunday.” The Serbian tennis star is still aiming to secure his first title of the year and has shown resilience in recovering from a slow start to defeat lucky loser Corentin Moutet 6-3 6-1, progressing into the third round in Rome.
A statement from the Italian Open read: “Novak Djokovic has been accidentally hit by a bottle while signing autographs after his 6-3 6-1 win against France’s Corentin Moutet at the Italian Open.
“This is not being treated as a deliberate act, but as an accident. A boy was calling out to get an autograph and the bottle fell out of his bag. Novak has been taken to the medical centre.”
Organisers later issued an update which read: “He has undergone the necessary checks and has already left the Foro Italico to return to his hotel. His condition is not a cause for concern.”
It was an eventful match, with Djokovic initially being broken in his first two service games. However, the Serb responded impressively to Moutet’s strong start, eventually taking the first set 6-4 after being 3-1 down. The second set saw Djokovic firmly in control as Moutet’s frustrations grew, resulting in warnings from the umpire for behaviors such as kicking the net and throwing his racket. Djokovic’s next opponent in the third round will be Chile’s Alejandro Tabilo, setting the stage for another exciting match in the tournament.
In other matches, former champion Alexander Zverev, the world No 3, displayed dominance as he defeated Aleksandar Vukic 6-0 6-4. Meanwhile, veteran Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov secured a victory over Yoshihito Nishioka with a score of 7-5 6-4 on Court 12. The tournament also saw surprises as fifth seed Casper Ruud suffered a shock defeat to Miomir Kecmanovic, who made an impressive comeback to win 0-6 6-4 6-4, with the Serb showing resilience after a medical time-out in the first set.
Moreover, Ben Shelton continued to demonstrate his impressive clay-court form, coming from behind to beat Pavel Kotov 4-6 6-3 6-4 and advance to the third round in Rome for the first time. There were also notable upsets, including Portugal’s Nuno Borges defeating 15th seed Alexander Bublik 6-4 6-4, and Brazilian qualifier Thiago Monteiro achieving a 6-1 6-3 victory over Australian No 32 seed Jordan Thompson.
Additionally, Luciano Darderi and qualifier Francesco Passaro delighted the home crowd with their wins over seeds Mariano Navone and Tallon Griekspoor respectively, adding an extra layer of excitement to the tournament for local fans.
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