Ebden just asked people in the crowd if they wanted to play against Djokovic instead of him 😭😂 Down 0-6 0-2, although, to be fair, Matthew hasn’t played a singles match in TWO YEARS 😅
'Fancy a game?' Ebden's hilarious proposal to fans in losing match against Djokovic
ATPSaturday, 27 July 2024 at 18:00
Matthew Ebden has seen the funny side throughout of being called up late to play Novak Djokovic at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games due to rules which see doubles players called up in the event of withdrawals.
Ebden was roundly trounced by the 24-time Grand Slam champion 6-0, 6-1 and at one point was asking fans if they wanted to step in and take his place in the match.
First he asked a fan if he wanted to take his place then he celebrated wildly when he won his sole game in the tie. Djokovic has done his part too in setting up the highly anticipated tie with Rafael Nadal who is likely to play tomorrow at the Olympic Games in singles.
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As expected both Djokovic and also Carlos Alcaraz faced little trouble in finding their way through to the second round. The latter facing a Lebanese player Hady Habib who won three games in the opening set to throw the fear into the Spaniard. But it was pretty comprehensive aside from that for the Roland Garros champion.
“Safe to say l'm officially retired from singles after that. It was a pleasure to share the court with you Novak for one last singles match on Philippe Chatrier here at the Olympics. All the best for the rest of the tournament (and if it's not one of our Aussies) I hope you get the 🥇 🐐," wrote Ebden on Instagram. Djokovic himself berated the fact that the Olympic Games rules made this match a reality with Ebden not playing singles for two years.
With players such as Matteo Berrettini playing in Europe this week, Djokovic believes that a standby system should be in place even for a rule that has been in place for years. It has seen not only Ebden play but also Robin Haase who was once a quality singles operator but hasn't played for a number of years face Sebastian Ofner.
Sometimes it helps the cause like Lulu Sun being asked to step in against Marta Kostyuk due to Yulia Putintseva's withdrawal but Ebden's case is one that in the view of some including Djokovic could've been avoided. But at least for the Aussie he found it funny despite getting well beaten.
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