Wimbledon tennis news 2026: Novak Djokovic apologises for ballgirl prank, win vs Stefano Tsitsipas, video

Novak Djokovic has given a ballgirl the fright of her life at Wimbledon, pretending she stabbed him with a pair of scissors during his second-round match.

The seven-time champion was in the midst of a clinical straight-sets win over Stefanos Tsitsipas when he required a tag to be cut off his shirt.

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Djokovic was sitting steadily while the young volunteer helped him with the issue, but couldn’t help himself and decided to prank her.

It led to a classic moment between the pair, with the girl jumping back in fright before covering her mouth in laughter when she realised Djokovic was joking.

Speaking post-match, Djokovic said the jovial moment “relaxed” him on the court en route to his 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 win over Tsitsipas.

“I guess these kind of things surface when you’re two sets to zero up rather than two sets to zero down,” he said.

“Stefanos went to change so I had some spare time … I’m sorry. I don’t know if she’s around. Sorry if I scared her. It probably wasn’t that great of a joke I guess.

“It made me a bit more relaxed.”

The reporter told Djokovic that indeed was a good joke, with the girl laughing off the situation quickly.

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The 39-year-old tennis legend will face Arthur Rinderknech in the third round.

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