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Novak Djokovic disqualified after hitting ball at line judge in US Open

Top seed Novak Djokovic has been disqualified from his US Open fourth-round match after accidentally hitting a ball at a line judge.

Djokovic showed his frustration after losing serve to trail 6-5 against Spain's Pablo Carreno Busta.

The Serbian world number one, 33, took a ball out of his pocket and hit it behind him, striking the female line judge in her throat.

After a lengthy discussion, he was defaulted by tournament officials.

A United States Tennis Association statement said: "In accordance with the Grand Slam rulebook, following his actions of intentionally hitting a ball dangerously or recklessly within the court or hitting a ball with negligent disregard of the consequences, the US Open tournament referee defaulted Novak Djokovic from the 2020 US Open.