“Can’t be GOAT if you cheat on your wife” – Rafael Nadal fans turn SALTY over Novak Djokovic winning a record 23rd Grand Slam title in the King of Clay’s absence
Novak Djokovic defeated Casper Ruud in the final of the 2023 French Open to win his record 23rd Grand Slam title.
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Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal (Image via Sky News and Tennis365)
Novak Djokovic may be the only great in his sport who isn’t much loved by fans across the globe. On Sunday, the Serb scripted history by becoming the first-ever man to win 23 Grand Slam titles. He defeated 4th seed Casper Ruud in the French Open final in straight sets 7-6(1), 6-3, 7-5 to win his 3rd Roland Garros title. He also became the first man to win all four Major titles three times and took the overall lead in the all-time Grand Slam leaders list for the first time in his career.
The Serb has astonishingly won 6 out of the last 10 Majors and is on the course to complete a calendar slam that he missed out on by just one match win in 2021. He looks like the favorite to win Wimbledon next month and if he keeps his schedule on point, could go on to win the US Open too. With Federer retired, and Nadal announcing 2024 could be his last season, Djokovic has every weapon in his arsenal to extend his Major tally to a number no one ever imagined.
Djokovic and Nadal both were tied at 22 Major titles and the Serb overtook Nadal to accomplish a historic feat in the sporting world. It is a no-brainer that Nadal and Federer share a super vast fan base when compared to Djokovic. Both of them have a very clean image and are hence loved by fans all across the world. Enter Djokovic, who expresses his controversial views openly and is smashing records set by Nadal and Federer that no one believed would ever be broken- of course, he has a fair share of people who don’t like him.
Read further: ‘Coach’ Nick Kyrgios proud of Novak Djokovic for winning the French Open following his advice
Rafael Nadal fans not happy with Novak Djokovic overtaking the Spaniard to take the #1 spot on the all-time list
Fans of 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal weren’t particularly happy with Djokovic overtaking Nadal at a place where the Spaniard has triumphed a record 14 times. Uncharacteristically, they turned salty and started attacking Djokovic below the belt. They highlighted Djokovic’s controversial views, his vaccination stand, and his political views, and also brought up his alleged cheating allegations.
Amid everything, Nadal has the utmost respect for Djokovic. He was one of the first people to tweet and congratulate his arch-rival. He surely wouldn’t want his fans to attack Djokovic unnecessarily because despite personal opinions, the fact that Djokovic is now statistically the GOAT cannot be taken away from him.
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Lakshya Chopra
(2634 Articles Published)