Novak Djokovic caught in the middle of 'shocking' incident after triumph at Rome Open

Novak Djokovic was caught in the middle of a horror incident following his 6-3, 6-1 win over France’s Corentin Moutet at the Rome Open. The World No.1 made light work of Moutet to advance to the third round but as the Serb was signing autographs and interacting with fans at the end of the match, he was struck in the head by a water bottle.

The tennis ace was in agony after being hit in the head as he left centre court at the Foro Italico, with the contact sending Djokovic tumbling to the floor grimacing in pain. Shortly after, the World No.1 was led from the arena by security, who covered the 24-time Grand Slam winner's head as he made his way down the tunnel and away from fans.

The tennis world was up in arms over the incident following the video first being shared by Italian media. It was not immediately clear whether the hard reusable bottle was deliberately thrown at the Serbian champion's head or if it was an accident. But it caused mass outrage, with the incident labelled "shocking" and "disgusting".

"Absolutely disgusting behaviour from whoever did this," X account The Tennis Letter tweeted. "The world is becoming a very sad place." However, other angles of the incident showed that the bottle fell out of the backpack of a spectator as he leaned down to try to get an autograph from the World No.1.

Following the incident tournament organisers provided an update on the Serbian champion's condition. "Novak Djokovic on leaving the Central court at the end of his match was accidentally hit on the head by a water bottle while signing autographs to spectators," Management of the Internazionali BNL d'Italia said.

"He underwent appropriate medication and has already left the Foro Italico to return to his hotel. His condition is not a cause for concern"

Novak Djokovic set to face Alejandro Tabilo in third round

In his first match for nearly a month, Djokovic took a little while to get into gear at the Foro Italico on Friday but once he did he was pretty ruthless, dispatching French qualifier Corentin Moutet 6-3 6-1 in their second-round meeting. After somewhat of a sluggish start, he quickly found his groove, taking the match in straight sets.

Djokovic will face Chile’s Alejandro Tabilo next, with the top seed having a perfect opportunity to get back to winning ways in Rome. The World No.1 has made no secret in the past that he loves playing in Italy and with a host of big names out of the Rome tournament, he will like his chances of notching a record-extending 41st Masters 1000 crown.

The Rome tournament, which runs until May 19, is without two of the tennis world's biggest stars, World No.2 Jannik Sinner and World No.3 Carlos Alcaraz. Both withdrew from the men’s draw before the start of the tournament but are hoping to be fit for the upcoming French Open.