Novak Djokovic’s first 2024 Italian Open match turned ugly.
As Djokovic exited the court, after beating Corentin Moutet 6-3, 6-1, and began signing autographs for fans, a bottle came flying down from the stands and smacked Djokovic in the head.
Djokovic quickly grabbed his head and fell to the ground in pain, staying there for several moments before being helped into the tunnel and into the locker room.
A child was leaning over the railing while trying to get Djokovic’s attention for an autograph, according to the Associated Press, and the aluminum-type bottle fell out of the child’s backpack and hit Djokovic on the head.
An audible gasp could be heard from the crowd after the bottle nailed Djokovic.
The severity of Djokovic’s injury was not immediately clear.
Sky Sports reported that he was being attended to by medical staff in the locker room after the incident.
Djokovic had otherwise cruised through his opener in Rome.
“I haven’t practiced with a lefty in a while, so it took me a little bit of time to adjust to the different rotation on the balls,” Djokovic said on the court following the match, before the incident. “The first four games were quite bad for me. … But then I played well.”
