Novak Djokovic was livid after being requested to endure a dope check shortly earlier than Serbia’s Davis Cup win over Great Britain, though the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) mentioned Saturday it was customary apply and he had not been singled out. The report 24-time males’s Grand Slam winner revealed his anger at being requested earlier than the 2-0 win on Thursday which despatched Serbia into the Davis Cup semi-finals, relatively than after.

Djokovic mentioned officers requested for samples 90 minutes earlier than his straight units 6-4, 6-4 win over Cameron Norrie. “I didn’t believe that they could make such a decision, in 20 and more years of my career, it never happened to me that an hour-and-a-half before the match, I needed to go for doping control,” the 36-year-old instructed Serbian reporters.

“I have my own routine — I don’t need that distraction, to have my urine and blood taken, to think about whether I can give urine at that moment.”

Djokovic mentioned he had no drawback with being examined “a hundred times” however not earlier than the match. However the ITIA mentioned the entire workforce was topic to testing and it was a normal method for workforce tournaments.

“Due to the format of team competitions, including the Davis Cup, teams may be notified that they have been selected for testing before matches begin and then provide samples when they are ready,” an ITIA spokesman instructed AFP.

“Between notification and providing the sample, they are chaperoned by a member of the anti-doping team.”

World primary Djokovic was already in dangerous humour after a run-in with some British followers throughout his victory over Norrie.

The ATP Finals champion instructed them to “shut up” and present “respect” to gamers after they tried to drown him out with drums throughout his post-match victory speech.

Serbia face Italy within the Davis Cup semi-finals on Saturday with Djokovic set to face world quantity 4 Jannik Sinner within the second singles rubber.