Novak Djokovic left in the middle of an interview after the 24-time Grand Slam winner was left miffed with repeated questions about the crowd’s behaviour during his Wimbledon Round of 16 match against Holger Rune. Djokovic, who took the crowd’s cheering for Rune at the Centre Count as indirect booing directed at him, began the chat by answering a question about the crowd, but was having none of it when the broadcaster wouldn’t budge from the topic and asked three straight questions about the episode.
Here’s how the conversation went.
Interviewer: “Novak, your post match reactions speak about some members of the crowd being disrespectful. On reflection, how do you feel now?
Novak: Same.
Interviewer: “You’re a 7-time champion here. Do you think you get the respect you deserve?”
Djokovic: “Look, as I said in the post-match interview, I think most of the people in the stadium were respectful. And I thank them and I know that after watching all the tennis, easy to say… I was thankful. I don’t take it for granted obviously. They are a big part of why I still play. The crowd and the people who really appreciate tennis players and what we do and the efforts we put in. I appreciate them buying tickets and coming to support us.
“I always try to acknowledge that. But then, you know, when I feel that the crowd is stepping over the line, I react, and I don’t regret my words or actions on the court.”
Interviewer: “How do you feel your mindset is when there is some disrespect from the crowd? Does it help you play better?”
Djokovic: “Do you have any other questions other than the crowd or you’re focussed only on that? Any questions about the match or something like that or… is it solely focussed on that?”
Interviewer: “Your immediate reaction afterwards…”
Djokovic: “This is the third question already. I mean, I said what I had to say.”
Interviewer: “So, Alex de Minaur next?”
Djokovic: “Yes, look forward to it. It’s going to be a tough one. Thanks”
Watch the clip below:
That Djokovic got up and left while the broadcaster was asking the next question ‘Do you think he [de Minaur] is going to be big here?” further reaffirms the belief that the 7-time Wimbledon winner was legit not impressed with the choice of questions.
Some context
On Tuesday, Djokovic called out the ‘disrespectful’ crowd for their constant chanting of ‘Ruuuuune’, which rhymes with ‘boo’, after progressing to the quarter-final of Wimbledon men’s singles. Despite the broadcaster explaining to him that the crowd was not booing him and were only cheering for his opponent, Djokovic had made up his mind.
“To all the fans that have had respect and stayed here tonight, I thank you from the bottom of my heart and I appreciate it,” Djokovic said in a withering on-court tirade. “And to all those people that have chosen to disrespect the player – in this case me – have a goooooooood night,” he added, mocking the exaggerated “Ruuuuune” chants.
“They were (booing). They were. I am not accepting it. No, no, no. I know they were cheering for Rune but that’s an excuse to also boo. Listen, I have been on the tour for more than 20 years. I know all the tricks, I know how it works. I focus on the respectful people that pay for the ticket, and love tennis and appreciate the players. I have played in much more hostile environments, trust me – you guys can’t touch me.”
