LONDON — Novak Djokovic is one example of a famous athlete who finds motivation everywhere. Other names that come to mind include Serena Williams, Michael Jordan, and Tom Brady.
With Djokovic, it frequently stems from — or at least his perception of — crowds that are against him. At Wimbledon, the 24-time Grand Slam champion was certain that people in the audience were pronouncing his opponent’s surname to sound like they were booing… and Djokovic, to use a Jordan-related joke, took it personally.
Novak Djokovic Uses Wimbledon Crowd’s ‘Disrespect’ As Fuel As He Moves Closer To Another Title
He reacted to what he perceived as “disrespect” aimed at him at Centre Court on Monday night as he moved closer to an eighth All England Club title.
“I played in much more hostile environments, trust me,” Djokovic told the raucous crowd. “You guys can’t touch me.”
It is not the first time Djokovic has been agitated by supporters cheering against him; he memorably described mimicking screams of “Roger! Roger!” (as in Federer) as his own two-syllable name, “Novak! Novak!”—and it is unlikely to be the last.
Djokovic, who returns to Centre Court on Wednesday to face Alex de Minaur, uses it as fuel.
“Some of the best athletes of all time feel quite slighted. They use that as inspiration: ‘I’m going to defeat you.'” James Blake, a former professional golfer who rose to fourth place in the rankings, remarked on Tuesday. “What happened yesterday was not a big deal in the grand scheme of things.” But he utilized it as motivation, which is great for him. I am sure it is challenging every day. You’re already the greatest of all time, and you want to push yourself to beat someone excited to play you. So you use whatever you have available.”
As 2003 Wimbledon runner-up Mark Philippoussis put it, Djokovic “wants to hear ‘boo,’ to be honest with you, because it makes him play better.” If I were to play him, I’d commend him on a change of ends.
Djokovic was asked following his fourth-round straight-set victory over Holger Rune – “Ruuuuuune!” sounds like “Boooooo!” — on Monday if there was anything that could be done about over-the-top interjections from the stands.
He replied he didn’t believe so and that ticket buyers could support whichever player they liked.
Some enjoy that aspect of the sport.
“It’s also nice to witness players’ emotions, like when irritated or annoyed. “It’s theater,” former top-10 player Alicia Molik stated.
“Often, it’s silence, but (players) must deal with both the noise and the vocal fans. Maybe if it were the U.S. Open, no one would notice since we’re used to it being so loud,” Molik explained. “But isn’t there a bit more of a hush at Wimbledon?” So, most likely, every mumbled phrase is exaggerated here.”
Alexander Zverev, the two-time major finalist who squandered a two-set lead and was defeated in five sets by Taylor Fritz, was another player tuned in to what was said in the tournament’s main arena on Monday.
Novak Djokovic Uses Wimbledon Crowd’s ‘Disrespect’ As Fuel As He Moves Closer To Another Title
When their play was over, Zverev complained to Fritz about what he heard in the American’s guest box — not from his coaches, but from people “that are not maybe from the tennis world, that are not maybe (used to) watching every single match; they were a bit over the top.”
Unlike Djokovic, Zverev could not enjoy having the final say in the form of a victory.
SOURCE | AP
