Novak Djokovic unleashed his frustration at Wimbledon tournament referee Denise Parnell after she opted to shut the roof on Centre Court at approximately 7:40pm local time following his split of sets with Felix Auger-Aliassime. When matches extend into the evening, the roof can be closed on the two principal showcourts to activate the floodlights and allow play to finish. However, sufficient daylight remained to carry on the contest with the roof open, and possibly even finish the third set before darkness became an issue.
Djokovic's Objections Dismissed
Djokovic attempted to put forward this argument to the referee, but his objections fell on deaf ears. The No. 7 seed had clinched a gruelling 82-minute first set against Auger-Aliassime 12-10 in a tiebreak. Yet the Canadian secured the match's first break of serve in the second set, before closing it out 6-3. At this juncture, Parnell stepped onto the court to notify the players and umpire that the roof would be closed with the match tied at one set apiece, rather than taking the chance of having to halt proceedings midway through the third set should visibility deteriorate.
Djokovic Questions Consistency
However, Djokovic took exception. "Why now? Why? The other day you didn't want to close it until, like, 8.20, 8.30, and now you want to close it? You don't want to get to 8.30? It's 7.40 now. We can play a whole another set. Outdoors. We are an outdoor tournament," he protested. Parnell then referenced Jannik Sinner's fourth-round clash against Shintaro Mochizuki, in which the roof had to be closed mid-way through the second set at 4-4 due to fading light. "With Jannik, I don't care what happens. I care about our match right now," Djokovic replied.
Historical Precedent
During the seven-time former champion's first-round encounter against Wu Yibing, the roof was similarly closed when Wu drew level at one set apiece, though this occurred nearly an hour later, at approximately 8:25pm. Turning his attention back to Parnell, Djokovic pressed on: "And you remember the first round? You didn't close it until, like, 8.20, 8.30. And now you want to close it at 7.40. Where is the consistency? You're so proud of your rules, and you're not sticking to any kind of rule. We have no idea what the rule is."
Commentator Reactions
"Well, that was a very uncomfortable conversation Denise Parnell had with Novak Djokovic, tournament referee," remarked commentator Nick Mullins. Todd Woodbridge responded: "Rightfully so. Novak is right, we've got another 40 minutes. You can play a set within 40 minutes. I am a bit perplexed when - Novak is right - when every other night, we've played to a certain point." Tim Henman, who also serves as a board member at the All England Club, said: "Looking out there now, could they carry on? They probably could. But I think from Denise Parnell's point of view, she would like to have the delay in closing the roof at a convenient time, and that is end of set. Is there a possibility of then playing this third set, getting to the latter stages, when you'd need to stop, and it being at 4-4 or 5-5? So I think it's a conservative time to shut the roof."
Play Resumes
Both Djokovic and Auger-Aliassime vacated the court while the roof was being closed, returning shortly afterwards once it had fully shut. After a brief warm-up, the pair resumed their contest at the beginning of the third set.
