Djokovic Adresses The Haters At Wimbledon

If you haven't seen the Djokovic on-court interview after the Rune match, I highly recommend that you check it out. It's on the Wimbledon YouTube channel. Let me summarize it for you real quick: Novak addressed his haters in the stands, told them to have a good night, and mimicked the booing they were doing during the match. Some people say they were actually saying "Rune" instead of booing. In England, you pronounce the last name “Rune” like this: “Roonay”. Who knows, but Novak was directly talking to the haters and telling them they can't touch him.

2024 Season

Since the French Open, we have the real Novak back. This year has been mysterious with many weird performances by Novak in different tournaments where it looked like he had no motivation. But at the French Open, it felt like the old Novak was back. Who knows how deep he would have gone in that tournament if he hadn't hurt his knee. Many questioned if Novak would be fit enough to play Wimbledon. In the first two matches, he looked a bit unstable at times, but in the fourth round match against Rune, he looked a lot better. Rune is a tough player to beat, especially on grass, but Novak took him out in three easy sets.

Now, Novak had a good draw and was scheduled to play de Minuar next. He played Musetti in the semis, and Alcaraz in the final Novak plays his best tennis when it matters most, which is the sign of a champion. In Grand Slam finals, he figures out a way to win. Despite being 37 years old, he's still capable of winning Grand Slam tournaments.

The Haters

Even with the knee surgery, many stories claimed the injury was fake. Some said he faked the injury in the match against Fritz, which made no sense because he called for a trainer while he was up early in the second set. People also said he didn't have surgery at all and it was all fake. Novak gets a tremendous amount of hate on social media.

Nadal receives some hate, but Novak's hate far surpasses any player in the history of tennis. Comparing him to past players like McEnroe, who was disliked but didn't get the same amount of hate as Novak. McEnroe wasn't booed in various tournaments across the globe to the extent Novak has been.

When athletes are criticized, they often feel motivated to prove the critics wrong. I don't know what it feels like to be booed by 15,000 people in a stadium. Most of us would falter under that pressure, but Novak plays his best tennis under those circumstances. When the crowd starts booing him, he plays better and often ends up winning the match.

Novak did something unusual by addressing the haters in a post-match interview. Swiatek did a similar thing at the French Open, but she didn't receive as much backlash. Novak received more criticism but also praise. I'm not comparing social media to real-life professional sports, but in both cases, responding to haters is usually not a good look. By acknowledging the haters, Novak admits they have an effect on him, though in his case, it turns negativity into positivity.

Unfair Treatment

Novak has stopped trying to embrace the crowd in the last two years and is letting the haters have it with different gestures on the court. His new celebration is playing the violin, which is directed towards his daughter, Tara, who is taking violin lessons. While the celebration is for his daughter, it's also a bit for the crowd. Novak has received a lot of unfair criticism, and I respect his choice to be honest and address the haters.

Novak has been unfairly treated throughout his career, but that's a topic for another video. The reasons people give for hating Novak are not the real reasons. For example, people criticize him for throwing his racket, but many players, including Federer, have done the same without facing the same level of hate.

Final Thoughts

What Novak did in the post-match conference is good for tennis because it creates headlines and discussions. It's entertaining and interesting. We need different personalities on tour. Novak is generous and gracious to his opponents, but he also lets his fiery side come out, which is good for the game. I'm not approving of smashing rackets, but it's okay to let negative emotions out. Novak's strength is coming out of negativity quickly and playing his best tennis on the next point.