Novak Djokovic's wife Jelena calls out Naomi Osaka's behaviour at Australian Open

Naomi Osaka got embroiled in a controversy after her Australian Open opponent, Sorana Cirstea complained to the chair umpire for allegedly breaking the rules during their singles match on January 22, 2026.

The Japanese tennis star shouted "come on" after Sorana missed a serve and she felt, it was disrespectful and unfair. While the umpire sided with Naomi, the internet is divided and now, tennis legend Novak Djokovic's wife, Jelena Djokovic has also weighed in on the issue.

Jelena Djokovic says applauding a serve mistake is "disrespectful"

Japan's Naomi Osaka won the Women's Singles match 6-3 4-6 6-2 against Romania's Sorana Cirstea. Naomi was occasionally seen cheering her opponents mistakes and at one point, the 35-year-old Romanian player reached breaking point and felt it was unfair.

With the moment from the match going viral, Jelena Djokovic, wife of Serbian tennis star, Novak Djokovic commented under an Instagram post on the issue. Jelena feels, Sorana's anger was justified and Naomi was actually breaking rules. She also held the chair umpire accountable who could not manage the situation as she should have.

Jelena did not hold her opinions and many agree with what she had to say. Her comment read, "Hmm, I'm surprised that this is not being called hindrance. In between 2 serves, when crowds are applauding or shouting the chair umpire asks to not shout between serves as it is disturbing to the player. The point is not finished".

The 39-year-old added, "Sorana missed her first serve and is focusing on getting in the second, it is a slight pause. And it is disrespectful to applaud at someone's first serve mistake too. I am surprised that chair/Naomi thought that was fair?! Were there any rule changes that I missed?".

Following the match, there was a tense situation during the players' handshake when Sorana seemed to brush off Naomi. In the post-match interview, the Japanese player was asked about the situation and she said, "Apparently a lot of come ons that she was angry about. Whatever. She’s a great player. I think this was her last Australian Open. Sorry she was mad about it".

In a later interview, Naomi Osaka apologised to Sorana Cirstea. "I guess that emotions were very high for her. I also want to apologize...I think the first couple of things that I said on the court were disrespectful. I don't like disrespecting people", the four-time Grand Slam Champion said.

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