Novak Djokovic left BBC commentators John McEnroe and Tim Henman bemused after being warned for an audible obscenity during his fourth-round win over Roman Safiullin, in a match that also saw the Serbian move past Roger Federer’s Wimbledon win tally and book a 19th quarter-final at the All England Club.
Novak Djokovic was issued a code violation for swearing during his Wimbledon fourth-round clash with Roman Safiullin, in a moment that briefly stunned BBC commentary team John McEnroe and Tim Henman. The seven-time champion had fought back from 2-5 down to win the first set on a tiebreak and built a two-set lead before being broken early in the third, at which point he appeared to shout an expletive along with another word in Serbian. Chair umpire Timo Janzen intervened immediately, announcing to Djokovic and the Centre Court crowd: “Code violation, audible obscenity, warning, Mr. Djokovic.”
McEnroe Left Guessing
The outburst caught McEnroe off guard as he attempted to work out exactly what Djokovic had said. “He’s working on that code… When you hear another language, it immediately goes to your native tongue. I’d love to know what he was just saying. Apparently the umpire knows,” the American said on BBC’s live coverage. Djokovic, for his part, accepted the violation without any objection. “There was no complaint from Djokovic, so,” Henman noted.
Far from unsettling him, the moment appeared to spark Djokovic into life. Safiullin faltered on the next game, allowing Djokovic to earn break points of his own before smashing a forehand winner to break straight back. Watching from the changeover, McEnroe suggested the outburst had worked in Djokovic’s favour. “Djokovic let it out, got a warning, and just capitalised immediately. Got his mojo back,” he said.
A Gruelling Third Set
The set proved a battle of attrition. Safiullin, the world number 132, needed an on-court medical timeout while leading 3-2, but recovered to win the set and extend the match. Despite regaining his footing after the code violation, Djokovic did not fully settle, according to his BBC commentators. “You sense he’s frustrated, he’s distracted,” Henman observed, to which McEnroe replied: “Just wants to get through this.” Their instincts proved accurate — Djokovic soon found himself 0-40 down on serve following Safiullin’s medical break. He clawed his way back to deuce with a string of powerful serves and winners, but Safiullin converted his sixth break point after Djokovic committed a costly unforced error, prompting the Serbian to angrily smash a ball away in frustration. Sections of the Centre Court crowd responded by booing the seven-time champion before play resumed.
Records Extended Despite the Wobble
Djokovic ultimately closed out the match to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals for the 19th time, extending yet another of his records at the tournament. The win also took him to 106 Wimbledon singles victories, moving him clear of Roger Federer’s total of 105 and leaving only Martina Navratilova with more singles match wins in the Championships’ history. Djokovic remains on course to equal Federer’s men’s record of eight Wimbledon singles titles, as well as chasing what would be a record 25th Grand Slam singles crown overall.
Praise for a Resurgent Opponent
Speaking afterwards, Djokovic admitted he had lost his composure at points during the match but was full of praise for Safiullin, saying the Russian qualifier had produced “a very high level” of tennis. Safiullin’s run to the fourth round had already been one of the standout stories of the tournament, having knocked out 12th seed Andrey Rublev and 24th seed João Fonseca en route — an impressive comeback after months on the sidelines through injury.
