NOVAK DJOKOVIC’S Wimbledon clash was temporarily halted on Centre Court – as English football fans celebrated the penalty shootout win.
England booked their spot in the semi-finals of Euro 2024 with a nervy 5-3 shootout victory over Switzerland following a 1-1 draw.
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Trent Alexander-Arnold smashed home the winning spot-kick at 7.40pm.
At the exact same time, Djokovic was in the middle of the second set against Alexei Popyrin of Australia – having surprisingly dropped the opener.
Popyrin was about to serve at 1-4 30-30 when suddenly a massive cheer went up around the 15,000-seater stadium.
And that was because plenty of supporters inside the venue were keeping tabs on events in Dusseldorf.
So when England secured their passage to the final four, fans could not help but celebrate.
As the huge noise echoed around, Djokovic stepped back from his return position and wiped his forehead with his sweatband.
He then jokingly pretended to take a penalty – with his left foot rather than his troublesome right knee, which has a grey support on.
And Popyrin hilariously mimed diving to attempt to save it.
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The laughing tennis duo – from Serbia and Australia – clearly appreciated the poignant moment and took the short delay in good spirits.
And the funny moment went down well on social media, too.
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One said: “Amazing.”
Another wrote: “Well aware of his surroundings.”
A third added: “Love this.”
And a final user replied: “What a great moment. And great awareness from the two players to take it all in good spirit. They read the room.”
It was all smiles for Djokovic a little while later too as the second seed recovered from dropping that first set to win 4-6 6-3 6-4 7-6 in three hours and five minutes.
Wimbledon have a ‘no football’ policy at the All England Club – meaning none of the TV screens around the grounds are showing any Euro 2024 matches.
That meant punters had to resort to catching it on phones while football trio Pep Guardiola, Roy Hodgson and Leah Williamson could not watch England’s win live as they were guests in the Royal Box.
Guardiola was joined by his glamorous daughter Maria and wife Cristina as the family were sat between England cricket stars Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler.
Earlier on during the day, after his win over Cameron Norrie, Alexander Zverev had heaped praise on Guardiola – before offering him the chance to switch sports and become his tennis coach.
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Tennis stars following in parents’ footsteps
TALK about pressure…
These rising stars are all making their way in tennis.
But they have got something in common – they’ve got a famous parent who also made their name in the sport.
So who are the players hoping to follow in the footsteps of their tennis mums and dads?
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