“We knew that it was going to be like that” Goran Ivanisevic expresses his anger at Novak Djokovic getting booed against Rafael Nadal in the French Open
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Goran Ivanisevic and Novak Djokovic
World No. 1 Novak Djokovic‘s title defence came to an end in the quarter-finals of the 2022 French Open when he was defeated in 4-sets by 13-time French Open champion and arch-nemesis Rafael Nadal. Nadal won the match 6-2, 4-6, 6-2, 7-6(4) in over 4 hours to avenge his defeat in the semi-finals of last year’s French Open and reduce the Serb’s lead to 30-29 in their head-to-head.
While the match had the brilliance of both players, it also involved the biased crowd in the Phillippe-Chatrier that came to watch the two French Open champions battle it out. Nadal being the crowd favourite is never a surprise, especially on Claycourts, but it also meant that Djokovic bore the brunt of it for no fault of his. Right from the moment his arrival was announced, he was met with jeers, whistles and booing which continued throughout the match while Nadal received the complete opposite reception from the crowd.
When the clash was confirmed, Djokovic’s new head coach Goran Ivanisevic had said that Nadal will be the favourite and it turned out to be unsurprisingly true. Djokovic had been the recipient of booing in earlier rounds but the Serb fought his way against the opponent and also the crowd but the story was different this time around.
“Novak Djokovic has won 20 Grand Slam titles”: Goran Ivanisevic
Speaking about the crowd after Djokovic’s defeat, Ivanisevic was candid and did not shy away from being diplomatic in answering his feelings about the entire thing. He demanded respect for his pupil not because it is a normal thing but also because Novak is undoubtedly one of the greatest players ever to grace the court.
“I mean, we knew that it was going to be like that. Before the match, I said 80 percent out of respect, but in reality, it was 99.9 percent of the pro-Rafa crowd. The only thing that I do not like and the thing that is really unfair is for the crowd to boo Djokovic when he entered the court. I mean, he is the No 1 player in the world and he has won 20 Grand Slam titles.
“There is no reason to do such a thing – whether you love him or not, you should respect him. Afterwards, cheer for Rafa, of course, we knew that it was going to be like that. I do not know if Novak was bothered by that or not – he has learned how to deal with it and that cannot be an excuse, in my opinion,” said Ivanisevic as reported by journalist Sasa Ozmo.
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Sarthak Shitole
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