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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Tom Sunderland

Z T-shirt fan allowed back into Djokovic Australian Open match as he makes initial claim

The identity of the Novak Djokovic 'super fan' who was recently removed from the Australian Open quarter-finals for sporting what appeared to be a pro-Putin 'Z' t-shirt has been revealed.

But American-Serb supporter Zoran Pavlovic has alleged his choice of clothing has nothing to do with Russia's barbaric siege on Ukraine. Four other spectators waving the banned Russian flag were removed from Rod Laver Arena during Djokovic's midweek win over Andrey Rublev.

The 'Z' symbol has been adopted by ultra-nationalists in Russia and beyond as a sign of support for Vladimir Putin and the invasion on Ukraine in general. However, Pavlovic claimed innocence to the police and was also allowed to attend Djokovic's semi-final win over Tommy Paul on Friday after explaining his story.

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