London, July 9: The winner of 24 Grand Slam titles and one of the greatest lawn tennis players in history, Serbian Novak Djokovic often enjoys the huge crowd support and cheer of fans.
But somehow, he does not get that support, cheer and love of fans in Wimbledon in recent years.
Two years ago, Djokovic was booed by Wimbledon crowd after he blew a kiss to fans following his semi-final win over Briton Cameron Norrie. The loss of the local guy and his kiss perhaps infuriated the audience.
On Monday, he faced a similar incident. He was so upset with the development that he accused a section of audience at the Wimbledon Centre Court, of using a Holger Rune chant as an excuse to boo him
The reason of Djokovic's anguish during a fourth round match on Monday, was that fans greeted Rune winners, and his (Djokovic's) errors, with elongated cries of 'Ruuuuuuu-ne'. .
Djokovic, who won the match convincingly 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 did feel that the crowd were disrespecting him.
Reacting on the incident in a post match interview, Djokovic stated that though he know they were cheering for Rune but that was an excuse to also boo him. He added his 20 years of experience round the world, has made him understand all the tricks followed by the crowd.
It can be recalled that after Djokovic defeated Roger Federer in the 2019 Wimbledon Final, his former coach Boris Becker had stated that he (Djokovic) certainly deserved more respect from a partisan crowd who had mostly sided with his opponent.
After the match, Djokovic expressed his dissatisfaction and anguish and said, "I played in much more hostile environments, trust me - you guys can't touch me".
He stated when the crowd over react, then only he expresses his dissatisfaction.
In the quarterfinals, Djokovic will face Australian ninth seed Alex de Minaur.
So far, Djokovic has won 98 singles titles, including a record 71 Big Titles. In his long and enviable career, Djokovic has won 24 Grand Slams, 40 Masters, and a record seven ATP Finals.
Bu somehow he continues to face a hostile crowd at times in Wimbledon in last few years.
