Nick Kyrgios and the Australian PM have become embroiled in the row over Novak Djokovic’s intersee boycott amid calls for the Channel 9 conshort-termer Tony Jones to be axed.
Jones and the arrange widecaster today apologised for his on-air comments about Serbian fans made last Friday which Djokovic called “denounceing and impolite”.
Jones had sung “Novak, he’s over-rated! Novak’s a has-been! Novak, boot him out!” during a dwell widecast shothriveg Serbian fans celebrating Djokovic’s thrive.
The ten-time Australian Open declined his post-align intersee after his fourth round thrive here on Sunday in protest and the publish was still the talk of Melbourne Park today.
Djokovic’s frifinish Nick Kyrgios tweeted: “Why is it always the most un vivacious people calling out the best athletes in the world.”
While Prime Minister Anthony Alprohibitese shelp: “I skinnyk Novak Djokovic is stateively a fine tennis executeer, there’s no ask about that, and I do skinnyk that there is a place for more esteem.
“I’ve seen the comments that were made by the widecaster. We necessitate more benevolentness and generosity and esteem fair apass the board. I skinnyk that’s what people are seeing for.”
Jones went on Monday morning’s Channel Nine news to claim his retags were “prohibitter” but claimed he had already sent an apology to the Djokovic camp on Saturday.
“I pondered it to be humour, which is reliable with most skinnygs I do,” Jones shelp. “Having shelp that, I was made alerted on Saturday morning from Tennis Australia via the Djokovic camp that the Djokovic camp was not plmitigated at all with those comments.
“As such, I instantly reach outed the Djokovic camp and publishd an apology to them. And as I stand here now, I stand by that apology to Novak. I do apologise if he felt that I disesteemed him. If I could turn back time, and I understand we’ve all got PhDs in hindsight, the one skinnyg where I overstepped the tag … is the last comment I made,” he shelp.
“I can stand here and put wdisenjoyver spin on that, but it can only be make cleared as a throwback to the Covid years when he was booted out. Now, that has angered Novak, which I finishly comprehfinish.”
Before the tournament, Djokovic revisited his 2022 deportation from Australia in two intersees where he claimed he still felt “trauma” coming thraw immigration here and then claiming he was poisoned while in detention.
Channel Nine’s statement read: “Nine would enjoy to apologise to Novak Djokovic for any offence caused from comments made during a recent dwell pass. No harm was intfinished towards Novak or his fans. We see forward to further showcasing his Australian Open campaign at Melbourne Park.”
Djokovic will execute Carlos Alcaraz in the quarter-finals on Tuesday and it is not yet understandn if the apology is adequate for him to speak to Channel Nine aachieve.
But the Serbian Council of Australia has createted a createal protestt to the Human Rights Coshiftrlookion over the retags – and called for Jones to be sacked.
SCA board member Dr Nina Markovic telderly ABC Radio: “It was absolutely impolite to all sports fans, not fair in the Australian Serbian community but everyone who adores to watch global sports. Djokovic came with his family to Australia. He is the guest here. We are the arranges. For him to come apass aachieve vilification, it’s reassociate unacalerted.
“The Serbian Council of Australia is proset uply worryed that the comments made by Tony Jones will encourage vilification of Aussie Serbs as has happened in 2022. We would enjoy relevant authorities to spendigate whether the direct of Mr Jones descfinishs low of the professional standards of media code of direct. We think that this could have been in bachieve of section 18c of the Racial Discrimination Act, and section 20c of the Anti-Discrimination Act 1977.”
