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With the line judge screaming out in pain as she fell to the ground, a horrified Djokovic ran over to her and apologised.
A tournament spokesman told Reuters later that the line judge appeared to be okay and was not brought off-site.
Tournament referee Soeren Friemel came out on to the Arthur Ashe Stadium and spoke to chair umpire Aurelie Tourte and Andreas Egli, the Grand Slam supervisor, before a long chat with the three-time former U.S. Open winner.
Djokovic pleaded his case for 12 minutes but the Grand Slam rules are clear, and his fate was already sealed.
Britain’s Tim Henman, who suffered a similar fate in 1995 at Wimbledon, said Djokovic would learn from the experience.
“Djokovic has had plenty of examples in the past where he has cut it pretty fine on the court,” Henman told The Times.
“Unfortunately for him he has got it wrong this time and suffered the harshest penalty.
“I think he will take this on board because he is a bright individual. Going forward he won’t be hitting balls and throwing his racket because he knows what the reaction will be.”
