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SportsPosted at: May 30 2025 8:41PM


Djokovic to play Sat night, misses UEFA Champions final again

Paris, May 30 (UNI) Novak Djokovic’s hopes of watching the UEFA Champions League final have once again been dashed, with French Open organisers scheduling him for the Saturday night session at Roland Garros—ignoring the world No.1’s expressed wish to avoid the late slot.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion will face Austrian qualifier Filip Misolic in the marquee 8.15 pm match on Court Philippe-Chatrier—timed to coincide almost exactly with kick-off in Munich, where Real Madrid will meet Borussia Dortmund in the final.
Djokovic, a self-confessed AC Milan supporter, made clear his preference following his second-round victory on Thursday. “It’s going to be PSG that I will support. I will definitely watch it if I’m not playing night session. Yeah, that will be nice. FYI, Roland Garros schedule,” he said with a smile, hoping to persuade the tournament to grant him a daytime slot.
However, the Serb’s request appears to have gone unheeded. This marks the second consecutive year he will miss the Champions League final due to a late match in Paris. Last year, his middle Saturday clash against Lorenzo Musetti ended around 3 am, contributing to a knee injury that forced his withdrawal before the quarter-finals.
The night session scheduling has already attracted criticism, with no women’s singles matches assigned to the 8.15 pm prime-time slot through the first week. The decision to feature only men in these televised matches has led to fresh allegations of gender imbalance at the Grand Slam.
Meanwhile, France No.1 Arthur Fils will play 17th seed Andrey Rublev on Court Suzanne-Lenglen in what is widely considered the best match of the day for French broadcasters. Fils, a vocal PSG fan, had his request granted to avoid a night session. “Let’s hope I’m playing in the afternoon but not during the night,” the teenager said earlier. “I’ve always loved Paris. I’ve played a little football myself. When I really started watching, it was when Mbappé and Neymar arrived.”
While Djokovic's fandom may not be as Paris-centric, he reminisced fondly about following Zlatan Ibrahimović with his father and keeping an eye on the Champions League despite the challenges of global tennis travel.
Whether Djokovic's scheduling woes affect his campaign remains to be seen—but the clash between sport’s two grandest stages will again force him to watch from the sidelines, if at all.
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Tags: #Djokovic to play Sat night# misses UEFA Champions final again
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