Novak Djokovic seemingly can’t help himself.
The world No. 1 has got tongues wagging after another cold comment about his relationships with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
The Serbian on Sunday powered through to the last eight of a Grand Slam for the 58th time, equalling Roger Federer’s men’s record, when he demolished Frenchman Adrian Mannarino in the fourth round at the Australian Open.
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Djokovic held nothing back when speaking to the press after the win — and was bluntly honest when asked about his relationship with the other two members of tennis’ Big Three.
The 24-time grand slam champion has repeatedly spoken of the strained relationship he has with Federer and Nadal — lamenting the lack of closeness with them. He said bluntly last month he is not friends with either of his biggest rivals.
On Sunday, the 36-year-old was asked if he would prefer to be reaching the end of his career playing alongside Federer and Nadal — or if he prefers to be surrounded by the so called “Next Gen” of stars, including Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev.
As reported by tennis journalist Sasa Ozmo, Djokovic said he doesn’t have any regrets about not finishing his career alongside Federer.
“I am really enjoying the rivalries I have with all those guys. Alcaraz, Medvedev, (Jannik) Sinner, everybody near the top I get along with quite nicely,” he said of the current locker room of players.
“If I were to compare my relationship with them to the one I had with Federer and Nadal, the relationship with my younger fellow players is much better, nicer. I enjoy it.”
When asked to further explain the comment, Djokovic responded: “I don’t know, it’s just more open, the younger guys are more communicative. We just get along better, that’s it”.
It was the second frosty comment made about Federer and Nadal this week.
Djokovic said after his third round victory last week that Federer did not like the way he behaved at the beginning of his career.
The comment came after Djokovic torched American young gun Ben Shelton over what he described as an “unsportsmanlike” act during the US Open.
Djokovic famously mimicked Shelton’s trademark “dialled in” phone-call celebration after a heated meeting in New York.
Now with Djokovic as the elder statesman, the Serbian is in a similar position to the one Federer had when their rivalry first began in 2006 when Djokovic was aged 18.
“I know certainly Federer didn’t like the way I was behaving at the beginning,” he said.
“I think it didn’t sit with him well. I guess I wasn’t the favourite type of guy to some of the top guys because I was not afraid to say that I want to be the best player in the world.
“I was kind of – not kind of – I was confident, and I felt like I have the game to back it up.”
“I never, ever lacked respect. Whenever I start a match, before the match or finish the match, I would always greet the opponent, always acknowledge.
“Respect is something that I was taught that needs to be present regardless of what is happening.
“Obviously on the court a lot of things can happen in a kind of heat of a battle. It was very long time ago now – 20 years since I made my first debut on the professional tour.
“It’s really hard to say who liked me more or less. I think I named one, so I don’t know. I can’t recall others.”
Despite all his achievements, it is widely recognised Djokovic has never been as loved by tennis fans as Federer and Nadal.
Djokovic has cemented a legacy as the king of Melbourne Park with 10 Australian Open crowns — yet is often jeered by fans on Rod Laver Arena.
It happened again on Sunday with Djokovic taking issue with fans during his crushing 6-0 6-0 6-3 win over Mannarino.
After being called for a time violation on his serve, Djokovic began arguing with the chair umpire over the call.
As fans continued to boo him, Djokovic elected to orchestrate the crowd like a conductor.
Fans watching on weren’t impressed and were quick to slam the world number one over the petulant act.
“The most unlikeable player of all time and it’s not even close,” one user wrote.
Another added: “This is why nobody likes you Novak. Not because of your nationality or the “western media”. It’s because you are a jerk. He literally only won one game the whole match at this point and was celebrating. Try acting more like Nadal and Federer. You might get some respect for once.”
A third wrote: “There is no hate or love. He’s just cringe and he should be ignored. I mean look at the score … he’s looking for unnecessary dramas and attention.”
Djokovic has now won 32 consecutive matches at the Australian Open, his last loss came back in 2018 at the hands of South Korea’s Chung Hyeon.
He will face 12th-seed Taylor Fritz next after the American beat last year’s runner-up Stefanos Tsitsipas 7-6 (7/3), 5-7, 6-3, 6-3.
