Novak Djokovic has called out a section of fans at the ongoing Wimbledon grand slam in London after beating Holger Rune in straight sets to reach the quarter-final at SW19 where he will face Australian ninth seed Alex de Minaur who saw off French man Arthur Fils in four sets earlier on Monday.
Speaking on court after the 6-3 6-4 6-2 win over 15th seeded Rune, the Serbian, seeded second at Wimbledon, did not mince words when asked by TV presenter Rishi Persad about the sub-plot of the encounter involving some of the spectators in Centre Court.
“To all the fans that have respect and stayed here tonight, thank you very much from the bottom of my heart,” Djokovic said before adding, “And to all those who have chosen to disrespect a player, in this case me, have a gooooooood night! Goooooodnight! Goooooodnight!”
Djokovic stressed on the ‘goodnight’ in response to what he felt was a part of the crowd at the Round of 16 match using his Danish opponent’s name, Rune, as a cover to boo him. “I know they were cheering for Rune but that’s an excuse, they also boo,” the seven-time Wimbledon champion said.
The 37-year-old continued, “I’ve been on the 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 OK. I focused on respectful people that have respect that paid a ticket to come along and watch tonight and love tennis. And love tennis. And appreciate the efforts that the players put in here. I played in much more hostile environments, trust me, you guys can’t touch me.”
Is Djokovic right for calling out the crowd or is he overreacting?