Novak Djokovic has perfect response to Australian Open heckler who shouts ‘get vaccinated mate’

NOVAK DJOKOVIC delivered the perfect response to an Australian Open heckler.

The ten-time champion, 36, cruised past Tomas Martin Etcheverry in round three.

Twitter

Novak Djokovic was heckled by a fan who told him to ‘get vaccinated mate’ as he prepared to serve on match point[/caption]

Getty

The Serb responded with an ace to seal victory[/caption]

And he had a little extra motivation to complete the job against Andy Murray’s conqueror on match point.

That is because someone in the Rod Laver Arena crowd taunted Djokovic by shouting out just before he served to close out the 6-3 6-3 7-6 win.

A rowdy spectator yelled: “Get vaccinated mate.”

The comment was in reference to Djokovic refusing to get the Covid-19 jab – which prompted his deportation from Australia in 2022 and then getting banned from entering America until last year.

Tree-lover Djokovic stepped away from the baseline as the umpire said “please” asking for quiet.

The 24-time Grand Slam champ then stretched his neck, flipped his tennis racket in his hands and then walked back to the line while wiping his sweat.

However, it did not put the steely Serbian off.

In fact, it seemed to channel an extra bit of focus as he silenced the supporter with an emphatic ace out wide to seal the win.

FREE BETS – BEST BETTING OFFERS & NEW CUSTOMER BONUSES

But rather than let out an almighty roar, Djokovic celebrated with a focused and composed shake of the racket and stared at his box.

Earlier on in the third set, Djokovic was visibly annoyed when he was given a time violation warning for taking more than the permitted 25 seconds over a serve.

That prompted injured commentator Nick Kyrgios to leap to his defence by slamming the controversial call as “ridiculous, just ridiculousness”.

And Djokovic continued his love-hate relationship with the Aussie crowd when he could not resist a very pointed finger to the ear.

It is the third time in three matches that the reigning champion has clashed with supporters.

In round one, he let rip as he did not know about a new rule allowing fans to move between games.

Then in his second match, the Serb clashed with a heckler and told him to “come down and say it to my face” – before Kyrgios offered to “do WWE” if it happened again.

Boozed-up supporters have caused a stir at this year’s tournament Down Under – following the construction of a new bar beside Court 6.

Despite a glass of champagne costing an eye-watering £15.33, punters are loving the so-called ‘party court’.

But players are less keen, with various complaints about noise and distractions, including from 2023 runner-up Stefanos Tsitsipas.