| Place: Melbourne Park Day:January 16-29 |
| Network coverage: Daily commentary from 07:00 GMT on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra ‘Tennis Breakfast’ live from Melbourne, with selected live text commentary and match reporting on the BBC Sport website & app |
Srdjan Djokovic watched his son Novak’s Australian Open semi-final from home to avoid causing “disruption” after being photographed with supporters of Russian president Vladimir Putin.
62 years old was photographed with a man holding a Russian flag in Putin’s presence after his son’s victory over Russia’s Andrey Rublev on Wednesday.
Novak nine times champion beat American Tommy Paul 7-5 6-1 6-2 on Friday.
“I am here only to support my son,” Srdjan said in a statement.
Srdjan’s image also features a man wearing a t-shirt with the pro-war Z logo after Djokovic’s quarter-final victory.
Another man is pictured in the stands wearing a similar t-shirt on Wednesday. He also attended Friday’s match with a different shirt.
Flags and emblems of Russia and Belarus have been banned from Melbourne Park since the Russian flag was displayed during the match between Kateryna Baindl of Ukraine and Kamilla Rakhimova of Russia on opening day.
Srdjan said: “I went out with Novak’s fans like I did after all my son’s games to celebrate his win and take pictures with them. I didn’t mean to get caught up. into this.”
“My family has lived through the horrors of war and we just want peace.
“So there’s no interruption to [the] semi-finals for my son or for other players I chose to watch from home.
“I’m looking forward to a great game and I’ll be cheering for my son as always.”
Before Srdjan confirmed he would not attend the semi-final, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese reiterated the country’s stance on the pro-Russia protests.
“I will make this point clear, that Australia stands with the people of Ukraine. It is Australia’s position and Australia clearly supports the principle of international law,” Albanese said at a news conference on Friday.
“We don’t want to see any support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.”
Albanese did not directly respond to the question of whether Srdjan should be deported.
Tennis Australia said in a statement it was “in line with calls for peace and an end to war and violent conflict in Ukraine”.
It added: “During the event, we spoke with players and their teams about the importance of not engaging in any activities that cause distress or disruption.
“We will continue to strive for the safety of fans at the event and reiterate our stance to ban flags from Belarus and Russia.”
Ukraine’s Kostyuk gets angry when he sees the Russian flag
Ukrainian player Marta Kostyuk has been one of the most vocal about the war and she said seeing Russian flags waved by Putin’s supporters at Melbourne Park was “heartbreaking”.
“I don’t understand how this can happen,” added the 20-year-old, who was defeated in the women’s doubles semi-final on Friday.
Kostyuk was born in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, which has been at the center of Russia’s offensive since it invaded the neighboring country in February 2022.
The world number 61 regularly highlights the devastating impact on Ukrainians caused by Russia’s actions.
“It’s heartbreaking because there are specific rules; you’re not allowed to bring flags,” said Kostyuk, who also made it to the third round of the singles event.
“It’s heartbreaking that they’ve been there for so long. Things like this shouldn’t be seen. It’s very upsetting.”
Kostyuk also wants the ban imposed by Wimbledon last year on Russian and Belarusian players to remain in effect this year.
The All England Club has yet to announce a decision for the Championship, which begins on July 3.
When asked if the Russian and Belarusian players should stop playing again, she said: “I think yes. Because I can’t imagine if a Russian or Belarusian won the tournament and then won the tournament and then The royal family must carry the trophy with them.
“I can hardly imagine this. This is one of the big reasons why they actually banned them. So I think yes.”
