Novak Djokovic’s father will NOT be at Melbourne Park to support his son in Australian Open semi

Novak Djokovic’s father pulled out of tonight’s Australian Open semi-final due to his controversial interactions with Vladimir Putin’s supporters on Wednesday.

Srdjan Djokovic has released a statement saying he will stay away from Melbourne Park, where his son is favorite to defeat American Tommy Paul in the second of the last four matches.

Among the raucous scenes after the quarter-finals, Djokovic Sr. was caught on video fraternizing with marginalized audiences along with a man in a Z-shirt. [denoting support for Russian armed forces] and behind the flag with Putin’s face.

Novak Djokovic’s parents of Serbia, father Srdjan and mother Diana react to his post-match speech after defeating Andrey Rublev of Russia.

However, he claimed he just wanted to thank Novak’s fans for their continued support.

“I’m only here to support my son. It was not my intention to cause such headlines or disruption,” he said.

“I was outside with Novak’s fans, as after all my son’s matches, to celebrate his victories and take pictures with them. I had no intention of getting caught with this.

“My family has survived the horror of war, and we only want peace.

Djokovic to reach Australian Open semi-finals against American Tommy Paul without father in the stands

“So my son or another player that I decided to watch from home will not interfere with today’s semi-final. I wish you a great match and, as always, I will cheer for my son.”

The initial incident was captured on a video posted by a pro-Russian activist showing a violation of Australian Open rules with visual and audio displays of support for Russia.

Subsequently, Tennis Australia warned players and their partners not to engage in contentious behavior.

They added to the statement by saying: “Following the events on Wednesday night, we acted quickly to work with the police and our security services to remove the protesters from the venue.”

“Throughout the event, we spoke to players and their teams about the importance of refraining from any activity that causes stress or disruption.

“Mr Srdjan Djokovic has released a statement confirming that he will not be attending today’s semi-final. We will continue to fight for the safety of fans at the event and reaffirm our position on the ban of the flags of Belarus and Russia.

“Tennis Australia calls for peace and an end to war and violent conflict in Ukraine.”

A spokesman for Novak Djokovic said he would not comment on the incident.