MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — A skirmish between ethnic rivals, a half-naked streaker and an upset of Ana Ivanovic combined for an extraordinary Friday at the Australian Open.
A woman was injured and two men arrested for riotous behavior when Serbian and Bosnian fans threw chairs outside Rod Laver Arena following a match between defending champion Novak Djokovic and Bosnian-born American Amer Delic.
Police said about 30 fans were ejected from Melbourne Park.Djokovic, a 21-year-old Serb, won the spirited but good-natured match 6-2, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4). But as the players hugged at the net, the first of dozens of chairs flew on the lawn near a big-screen TV showing the match.
``There's absolutely no place for that. This is a tennis match,'' said Delic, who moved from Bosnia at 14 and lives in Jacksonville, Fla. ``As I'm sure you all saw at the end, Novak and I are friends. We're both competitors. In the end it was a fair match, and there was no reason for such things.''
Earlier Friday, a streaker dashed on court while Venus and Serena Williams played doubles, prancing around before being arrested.
The Williams sisters were en route to a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Japan's Ayumi Morita and Germany's Martina Muller when the man, wearing only a shirt, sprinted across the sidelines and made several dance moves before heading toward an exit.
He was met by security guards, arrested and banned for the event. He was not immediately identified.
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