Daily Dose of Social Media: Dog interrupts Challenger in Chile, Djokovic heartfelt reunion with old friend

In today’s Daily Dose of Social Media, we review the most notable activities and commentary from ATP and WTA players. Novak Djokovic was the main figure of the day during his visit to Qatar, where he interacted with the Ferrari F1 team and had a special reunion with an old tennis friend, just hours before traveling to Argentina for the exhibition match with Juan Martín del Potro.

Additionally, an unusual incident occurred at the Challenger Tour when a dog interrupted a live match. On the other hand, Hubert Hurkacz announced an exciting partnership with two tennis legends for the 2025 season, aiming to get back into the race for Grand Slam titles.

Hours before heading to Argentina for Juan Martín del Potro’s "final challenge," the 24-time Grand Slam champion made a visit to Doha and enjoyed the Formula 1. From Ferrari's box, he watched the first free practice sessions of the Qatar Grand Prix, although due to his commitment in Argentina, he won’t be able to attend the Sunday race.

The former world No. 1 is filling his off-season with various commitments, and F1 always holds a special place for Nole, who has attended multiple motorsport events. He took the opportunity to join a stretching practice with elastic bands.

Djokovic was also in Qatar to sign on as an ambassador for Qatar Airways. He visited the airline's facilities in the country and had fun with the simulator. The Serbian was pleasantly surprised when one of the airline's captains showed him a photo on his phone. "Met the Captain. Turns out we played tennis together as kids. You won’t believe the photo showed me,” he wrote on Instagram after the encounter. “We haven’t changed a bit. Aged 12 and 14 at Niki Pilic tennis academy. Crazy coincidence. Great to see you again, my friend.”

A dog took a stroll across the court this Wednesday during a match in the round of 16 at the Challenger 100 in Temuco, Chile. The animal unexpectedly appeared on Court 2 of the ‘Germán Becker’ while Ecuador’s Álvaro Guillén Meza and Brazil’s Daniel Dutra da Silva were playing the fourth game of the first set. As Guillén was preparing to serve with the lead, the dog appeared from one corner and casually crossed the hard court.

Upon noticing the unusual scene, the umpire immediately left his chair to escort the dog off the court. Without any further intervention or provocation, the dog peacefully exited the court from the side. Ultimately, Dutra da Silva claimed the victory with scores of 7-6(2) and 6-3, advancing to the quarterfinals of the tournament, which offers a prize pool of $133,000.

The ATP published an interview with Taylor Fritz from three months ago, where he set his ranking goal for the end of the year. The 27-year-old American had a strong finish to the season, reaching the final at the ATP Finals with victories over Alex de Minaur, Daniil Medvedev, and Alexander Zverev, which propelled him to World No. 4—his best year-end ranking to date.

In a September interview, the American was asked about his expectations for the rest of the season and how he rated his performance up to that point. “How would you rate your year out of 10?” the No. 1 American was asked. “A 9,” he replied, smiling.

“I think I improved everything a little bit. I think I’m serving a bit better this year,” he said. “Especially, I’ve been more motivated to achieve bigger results at the Slams, because that’s something I hadn’t really done much of in previous years. So I think that was a big goal for me this year.”

When asked about his expected ranking for the end of the season, Fritz confidently stated he aimed for a spot in the ‘Top 5’.

Hubert Hurkacz made a significant move on the ATP Tour by teaming up with two tennis legends with impressive coaching careers. The Polish player, who has dropped to World No. 13 in the rankings, hopes this partnership will help him return to his best level and aim for Grand Slam titles.

The first is eight-time Grand Slam champion Ivan Lendl, who has had a long career as Andy Murray’s coach, leading him to all three of his Grand Slam victories. The Czech coach worked with Murray between 2011 and 2023 in three different stints, as well as having a successful run with Alexander Zverev between 2018 and 2019.

Joining them is two-time Olympic gold medalist Nicolás Massú, who helped Dominic Thiem achieve major success. Massú was instrumental in Thiem’s victories at Indian Wells and the 2021 US Open, as well as two Grand Slam finals. He also guided the Austrian to World No. 3, his highest-ever ranking.

Hurkacz follows in the footsteps of players like Jannik Sinner and Holger Rune, who have embraced dual coaching partnerships, now working with two former players who have helped their charges win their first major titles.