Novak Djokovic knows fans at tennis matches have the right to boo him, but that doesn’t mean he understands why someone would do that.
In his three-set victory against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina — the No. 29 seed — on Friday, Djokovic faced plenty of commentary from the French Open crowd, though he seemed to use that as fuel by the way he acknowledged the fans and responded on the clay court.
“A majority of the people come to enjoy tennis or support one or the other player,” Djokovic said following his match, according to ESPN. “But they are individuals. There are people — there are groups or whatever — that love to boo every single thing you do. That’s something that I find disrespectful and I frankly don’t understand that.
“But it’s their right. They paid the ticket. They can do whatever they want.”
Djokovic, as always, has emerged as a top contender in the French Open, which began Sunday with the 36-year-old searching for his 23rd major title and third championship at Roland Garros.
When Rafael Nadal also announced in May that he wouldn’t participate in the tournament he won 14 times, that only helped Djokovic, too.
“Obviously, Nadal not playing in the tournament here is a big loss for tennis, is a big loss for Roland-Garros, because he’s by far the most successful player to play in this tournament in the history,” Djokovic, the No. 3 seed behind Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev, said, according to Eurosport. “So of course, it opens up a chance, an opportunity for the rest of us to try to get a title.”
That began with three-set victories against Aleksandar Kovacevic and Márton Fucsovics, and then a match that lasted 3:36 — and featured plenty of contributions from the crowd — followed.
According to the Associated Press, one of those moments came at the end of the second set, when Djokovic strung together three consecutive games after trailing 5-4.
After the final point, he pumped his fist into the air and roared, which then was reportedly followed by some boos.
Those allegedly continued ahead of the third set, when Djokovic needed a medical break to account for an upper led massage.
The fans, according to the AP, didn’t appreciate that timeout, either, but Djokovic just responded by waving, giving a thumbs up, applauding and more sarcastic gestures.
“At times, you know, I will stay quiet. Not ‘at times’ — actually, 99% of the time, I will stay quiet,” Djokovic said, according to the AP. “Sometimes I will oppose that, because I feel when somebody is disrespectful, he or she deserves to have an answer to that. That’s what it is all about.”
