The veteran broadcaster was live at Melbourne Park on Friday when a large group of Djokovic fans holding Serbian flags began cheering in the background behind him.
Jones responded by singing to them: “Novak, he’s overrated … Novak’s a has-been. Novak, kick him out.”
“I should also say the disrespect was extended, in many ways, to the Serbian fans,” he said in his apology.
“We have built up a nice rapport with the Serbian fans … there is banter, and I thought what I was doing was an extension of that banter. Quite clearly that has not been interpreted that way.
“I feel as though I’ve let down the Serbian fans. It has been an unfortunate situation.”
In a strongly worded statement issued before Jones’s apology, the Serbian Council of Australia called for him to be sacked and said it had lodged a complaint with the Australian Human Rights Commission.
“His comments are offensive, racist and only serve to incite further discrimination of Australian-Serbs,” it said.
Jones was also a target for American player Danielle Collins last week after he labelled her a “brat” when she thanked Australian Open hecklers for “paying my bills” in her defeat of home hope Destanee Aiava.
© 2025 AFP
