Novak Djokovic has always had a love-hate relationship with tennis fans, and that dynamic won’t change anytime soon.
Novak Djokovic did not hold back against some apparent fans' disrespect.
Djokovic cruised to his 15th Wimbledon quarterfinal after dispatching Danish counterpart Holger Rune in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4, and 6-2 in the men’s singles event on July 9, Tuesday.
But Djokovic took exception to some of the fans’ behaviour in his victory over Rune, believing that they were being disrespectful and booing him.
"To all those who respect the players, I want to thank you for coming and supporting us. And to those who don’t, to those who don’t respect us, have gooooooooooooood night,” a mocking Djokovic said in the post-match interview.
“I tell you one thing, you can’t touch me,” the 24-time Grand Slam winner reminded.
This came after some fans greeted Rune winners, and Djokovic errors, with elongated chants of 'Ruuuuuuu-ne' during their fourth-round battle that for Nole felt the crowd were disrespecting him.
The 37-year-old tennsiter was even seen responding to the crowd with his lips pursed in a mock kiss after taking a 2-0 set lead over Rune.
On-court interviewer Rishi Persad tried to clarify that it is the fans’ way of supporting Rune, but Djokovic doubled-down on his opinion.
“They were [disrespecting me]. They were. I don’t accept [that they were just cheering for Rune]. No, no, no. I know they were cheering for Rune, but that’s an excuse to also boo.
“Listen, I’ve been on the [ATP] Tour for more than 20 years. So trust me, I know all the tricks, I know how it works. It’s fine, it’s fine, it’s okay."
The Serbian star added he is more focused on people “that have respect” and those “who love tennis and appreciate the players and the effort put in here.”
With cheers sounding through the indoor arena, Djokovic had one last thing to say before trying to end the exchange: “I’ve played in much more hostile environments, trust me.”
Later in his post-match press conference, Djokovic, who will also play for Team Serbia in Paris, 2024, reflected on the incident:
"It's fully understandable that they have the freedom to choose who they back in the match.
"But if somebody steps over the line, I react. That's basically what it was."
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Rune, for his part, clarified it’s not the first time the same incident happened.
“It all started in the US Open the first time we played each other when I was 18 or something. They were shouting my name, Rune. It sounded a little bit like 'boo'.” the 21-year-old spoke in the post-match press conference.
“Yeah, I mean, if you don't know what was happening, probably it sounded like 'boo'. But we all know what happened, it was my name."
Djokovic will play in his record-extending 60th Grand Slam quarter-final against Australia's Alex De Minaur.