“Level of pettiness I aspire to” – Novak Djokovic removes French flag from his victory tweet after being booed unjustly against Holger Rune in Paris, wins fans’ approval

Novak Djokovic faced the brunt of the crowd as the French spectators booed him off the court after the end of the second set. 

“Level of pettiness I aspire to” – Novak Djokovic removes French flag from his victory tweet after being booed unjustly against Holger Rune in Paris, wins fans’ approval

Novak Djokovic (Image via: FirstSportz)

24-time Grand Slam title champion Novak Djokovic avenged his loss against Holger Rune at the Paris Masters as he got the better of the Dane in the quarterfinal at the Accor Arena on Friday. The 1st seed defeated the 6th seeded defending champion 7-5, 6-7(3), 6-4 in 2 hours and 54 minutes to break his 8-match winning streak at the tournament. 

It wasn’t all smooth sailing for the Serb, though. After losing the second set in a tiebreak, the 36-year-old went to the changing room for a toilet break. The first seed faced the brunt of the crowd as the French spectators booed him off the court. Djokovic found the reaction of the French crowd funny, as he laughed while walking off the court.

YouTube video

The record six-time champion at the Paris Masters didn’t forget the hostile reception from the crowd as he made a subtle change to his post on the social media site ‘X’. Eagle-eyed users on social media spotted that Djokovic edited his tweet to remove the French flag and a heart next to it, in a subtle dig at the French crowd.

On being asked about the boos in the post-match press conference, the World No.1 said: 

When I asked the audience to boo at me a little more, I won 8 points in a row. But I didn't do anything to provoke the audience, that's how it is. Is the Parisian crowd special? That's a good word, they are special… very special.

Further talking about the match, the win took Djokovic to a joint record alongside Rafael Nadal in the 76th Masters semi-final. The first seed also leveled his head-to-head against the 20-year-old at 2-2. The World No. 1 has already qualified for the ATP Finals to be played in Turin, Italy. 

Social Media users back Novak Djokovic after he faced a hostile reception from the French crowd

Tennis fans on social media jumped out in support of World No. 1 Novak Djokovic after he was subjected to boos by a hostile French crowd during his quarter-final encounter against Holger Rune. 

Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic (Image via : Florin Baltatoiu)

Sympathizing with the Serb, fans lashed out at the French crowd, saying that they would recognize his greatness when he stopped playing the tournament. Reacting to Djokovic editing out the French flag from his tweet, a user said that was the level of pettiness he aspired to. 

Sharing a wide variety of reactions, here’s what fans on ‘X’ had to say:-

Next up, Djokovic faces 5th seed Andrey Rublev in the semi-final clash on Saturday. The Russian defeated Aussie pro Alex de Minaur as he came back from a set down to book his spot in the semi-final. The 1st seed leads the head-to-head 4-1, with their most recent clash coming at the quarterfinal stage of Wimbledon earlier this year.

In case you missed it: