MELBOURNE, Australia — Australian broadcaster Tony Jones apologized to fans after admitting in a news report on Friday that Novak Djokovic and Serbian tennis fans crossed a line.

Djokovic apologized after skipping his usual on-court interview on Sunday night following his fourth-round win at the Australian Open. The 24-time Grand Slam winner said it was a protest against Jones and Australian host Channel 9.

On Friday's news show, Jones grilled Serbian fans, saying Djokovic was "overrated," "outdated" and "kick him out."

Jones appeared on Channel 9's "Today" morning show on Monday morning to apologize to Djokovic and Serbian tennis fans after Djokovic said he would not engage with the local broadcaster until he made a public apology .

Jones said he thought he was "joking" with fans but admitted he crossed a line.

"These comments were made on the news Friday night and I thought they were a joke," Jones said. “I think it’s humor, which is consistent with most things I do.

"Having said that, on Saturday morning I was informed by Tennis Australia through Djokovic's camp that Djokovic's camp was not happy with these comments at all. Therefore, I immediately contacted Djokovic's camp and Apologize to them - - this was 48 hours ago - for any disrespect that Novak felt, as I stand here now, if he felt any disrespect, I can only insist on apologizing to him, that's obvious to him. Did it.”

Jones said he felt his comments about "kick him out" "crossed a line" and "can only be interpreted as a throwback to the COVID-19 era."

Djokovic, who is unable to defend his 2022 Australian Open title after refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccine, said earlier this month he was still traumatized by it every time he visits Melbourne.

“It’s an unfortunate situation — a personal angst for Novak and a personal angst for me,” Jones said. "The priority now is to focus on tennis again. I can only tell Novak again what I told him 48 hours ago, which is that if he feels I have disrespected him, I will apologize."

As for Serbian fans, Jones said he apologized to those who brought "so much color and passion" to the World Cup.

"We have a great relationship with the Serbian fans," Jones said. "They brought the flag and so much color and passion. There was banter and I think what I did was an extension of that banter. Obviously it wasn't interpreted that way. I felt as though I let everyone down. "Serbian fans. "

On Sunday night, Djokovic clarified why he skipped the on-court interview in a post-match video posted to social media platform before answering any questions.

Djokovic is not the first player to criticize Jones' behavior during the tournament. American Danielle Collins, ranked 11th in the world, mentioned Jones after losing to compatriot Madison Keys in the third round.

Collins said Jones labeled her a "brat" on the radio show in response to her mocking the Australian crowd earlier in the game.

"I love this old guy. Tony? Tony Jones?" Collins said. "...I just love the way he calls me kid. And, like, Gen Z and Millennials right now. It's Charli XCX and I really want him to do the dance that she does. He's got to do that."

Djokovic will next face third seed Carlos Alcaraz in the Australian Open quarter-finals on Tuesday (Australian time).