World No. 1 Novak Djokovic knows all too well the pitfalls that can come with getting on the wrong side of tennis officials, sympathising with Alexander Zverev following his expulsion from the Mexican Open.
Zverev travelled to Acapulco as the tournament's reigning singles champion, but his competition was cancelled early after he repeatedly clattered the umpire's chair with his racket following his doubles exit after a controversial line call on the penultimate point of the match.
The 24-year-old and partner Marcelo Melo lost on a champions tiebreak to Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara, leading Zverev to react in a way that drew widespread criticism from fans and pundits alike.
Djokovic has experience in such matters after he was sent packing from the 2020 U.S. Open for accidentally hitting a line judge in the throat with a ball he struck out of frustration.
While many would argue the very deliberate nature of Zverev's outburst made his reaction worse, Djokovic acknowledged the similarities.
"I think he said it all in that statement. He realises that it was a mistake," the Serb told reporters. "I understand the frustration. Sometimes on the court you feel in the heat of the battle lots of different emotions.
"I made mistakes in the past where I've had tantrums on the court. I understand what the player is going through.
"But, of course, I do not justify his actions. He has, with the words that he had in the statement, handled it in a right way.
"I think the disqualification decision was not too harsh. I think it was correct under the circumstances."
It wasn't only Olympic gold medal winner's actions that alarmed the tennis world, but Zverev's words as well after he called the official a 'f*****g idiot'.
"You f*****g destroyed the whole f*****g match! The whole f***ing match," Zverev exclaimed.
Zverev took to social media and later apologised for his actions against umpire Alessandro Germani, adding that he was 'disappointed in himself' following the incident.
Djokovic is currently playing in the Dubai Tennis Championships, having been prevented from defending his Australian Open title in January due to the fact he hasn't received the Covid-19 vaccine.
Asked whether Zverev deserved a more serious punishment amid calls for him to be suspended, Djokovic replied: "I'm never going to encourage ATP disqualifying or fining a player because I'm not in a position to do that. Why would I do that?"
Zverev was due to meet German compatriot Peter Gojowczyk in the second stage of the tournament after he beat American Jenson Brooksby in the opening round.
However, Zverev's exit meant Gojowczyk was handed a walkover into the next phase of the competition, where he'll face Britain's Cameron Norrie.
Andy Murray took a similarly diplomatic view of Zverev's actions and argued that while it's understandable to get frustrated in the elite echelons of tennis, the German went too far.
"When you're ripping your tennis racket right next to the umpire multiple times, yeah, you can't be doing that," the Scot said.
"I know obviously one of the British guys who was playing (Glasspool), as well - a bit dangerous. It's graphite flying off the racket, as well. Yeah, it was not good."
