Novak Djokovic pranks ball girl at Wimbledon

Novak Djokovic entertained fans at Wimbledon 2026 with a playful prank before producing another dominant performance to reach the third round.

During a changeover in his second-round match against Stefanos Tsitsipas, Djokovic asked a ball girl to help remove the tag from the back of his shirt. He then jokingly pretended she had accidentally hurt him, briefly leaving the youngster shocked before revealing that he was only kidding.

The light-hearted moment quickly went viral, with fans enjoying the Serbian star's sense of humour.

Watch: Speaking after the match, Djokovic admitted the prank was probably inspired by the comfortable position he found himself in during the contest. "I guess these kind of things surface when you're two sets to love up rather than two sets to love down," Djokovic said with a smile. He added, "Stefanos went to change so I had some spare time. I'm sorry. I don't know if she's around. Sorry if I scared her. It probably wasn't that great of a joke, I guess."

Djokovic made sure the entertainment continued on the court as he defeated Tsitsipas 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 in less than two hours. The 24-time Grand Slam champion looked far more comfortable than he did in his opening-round victory and extended his winning streak against the Greek star to 12 matches.

"It made me a bit more relaxed. She was laughing. It was a good moment for her as well," Djokovic said while reflecting on the prank. The Serbian was particularly effective on serve, winning 82 percent of points behind his first delivery and taking control of the match from start to finish.

The victory keeps Djokovic's hopes alive of winning a record-equalling eighth Wimbledon title and a historic 25th Grand Slam singles crown. Seeded seventh this year, the Serbian will next face Arthur Rinderknech in the third round as he continues his pursuit of more history at Wimbledon.