Australian police have arrested a number of Russian tennis fans who raised Russian flags with the image of President Vladimir Putin.
Serbian Djokovic crushed Russia’s Andrei Rublev 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 and reached the semi-finals of the Australian Open. After that, the 35-year-old rated the match as his second-best Australian Open match ever.
After the match, there were scenes not often associated with the sport of tennis.
Melbourne police have arrested four Russian fans for threatening security. Russian and Belarusian flags Illegal inside the stadium in the prestigious tournament.
It happened after the crowd, who had such flags at the start of the tournament, helped the provocation.
On the steps outside the stadium, some Russians have nevertheless chosen to display the Russian flag with a portrait of President Vladimir Putin, the leader who chose to invade neighboring Ukraine on January 24 last year.
– Four people in the audience displayed inappropriate flags and symbols and threatened security guards, a spokesperson for Australia’s tennis organisation, Tennis Australia, said, according to Melbourne’s The Age newspaper.
– Police in Victoria (Melbourne State, today’s newspaper) intervened and questioned them. The safety and comfort of the public is our priority and we work closely with the authorities and security officials.
Images from inside the stadium also show a spectator wearing a large Z on his shirt, a poorly concealed support for Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The Russian and Belarusian flags were initially legal if people used them without disturbing others.
Since the invasion of Ukraine last February, tennis players from Russia and Belarus have taken part in tournaments under neutral flags. The same applies to the Australian Open.
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