Novak Djokovic has delivered a classy tribute to former rival Roger Federer after the world No.4’s barnstorming quarterfinal win over Andrey Rublev.
Djokovic needed little over two hours to defeat Rublev on Rod Laver Arena, sealing his spot in the Australian Open semi-finals for the 10th time in his career as he aims for his 10th title at Melbourne Park.
The 21-time grand slam champion will now face Tommy Paul for a spot in the final, with Paul contesting his first major semi-final.
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‘Took me 10 f***** years to get over it’ | 01:53
In his post-match interview with Jim Courier, Djokovic was asked about his first major semi-final, which he won at the 2007 US Open before losing in the final to Federer.
As Djokovic mentioned Federer, the crowd erupted into applause, with Djokovic then adding: “Lets give a big round of applause to Roger guys, lets go!”
“He deserves it. I had some great battles with Roger over the years that’s for sure.
“Tennis misses him for sure. I’ve seen him dressing up very sharply for fashion week, I saw him the other day (on social media).”
Federer also posted a video of himself skiing and enjoying life post-retirement, with Courier asking Djokovic if he’d seen that post too.
“Yeah, I‘ve seen him skiing. I want to challenge him to a little skiing race in few years time,” Djokovic, who was a skier even before he first picked up a tennis racquet, said.
“But yeah, he‘s enjoying life for sure. It’s nice to see that.
“Obviously for tennis, he’s been one of the most important players ever to play the game. So, big regards to him and his family.”
Djokovic also made a point to celebrate both his physio and mother, who had birthdays this week.
The crowd sang Djokovic’s mother ‘Happy Birthday’, while Djokovic said of his physio: “He has been through hell with me these last 10 days with all the treatments and everything he has to endure on a daily basis from morning to night.”
“He’s with me all the time and he deserves huge credit so I want to thank him and I want to say I’m very grateful to have him on the team.”
