Novak Djokovic put the crowd on notice after his win against Holger Rune at Wimbledon on Monday.
Throughout the match, fans were loudly saying “Ruuuuuune!,” as his supporters often do. However, this was taken by Djokovic to be “Booooo”s in his direction, which they very well could have been.
It’s unclear what was actually being said, but the 24-time Grand Slam champion was not happy either way. He made sure to address the audience in his post-game comments before leaving the court. Here’s what the quarterfinalist had to say after his gutty three-set win.
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Novak Djokovic post-match interview today
Djokovic took a mocking approach in his address to the crowd after the match, both thanking his supporters and demeaning his opposers:
“To all the fans that have respect and that stayed here tonight: Thank you very much from the bottom of my heart,” he said. “And to all those people that have chosen to disrespect the player — in this case, me — have a goooood night. Gooooood night. Gooooood night. Very gooooood night.”
Clearly trying to mimic the “boos” he believes he heard, Djokovic continued on after the interviewer tried to insinuate the noise was just support for Rune. The seven-time Wimbledon champ would not accept that.
“I know they were cheering for Rune, but that’s an excuse to also boo,” Djokovic said. “Listen, I’ve been on the tour for more than 20 years, so, trust me, I know all the tricks. I know how it works.”
He finished by saying “I played in much more hostile environments, trust me. You guys can’t touch me.”
In the post-match press conference, Djokovic was asked whether he thinks the All-England Club should step in to curb fan behavior. He responded that he doesn’t know what they can really do about it.
“Yes, you could argue maybe a chair umpire or whoever can step in in certain moments and calm them down, but there’s not much you can do,” he said. “You’re not going to take out the whole section of the crowd or stadium because they’re misbehaving or showing disrespect.”
Novak Djokovic vs. Holger Rune score
Player S1 S2 S3 F
Rune 3 4 2 0
Djokovic 6 6 6 3
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Novak Djokovic Wimbledon record
Djokovic has won Wimbledon seven times and has appeared in nine Finals. He has participated in the tournament every year except for 2020, when it was not held due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Here is the tennis star’s record in Wimbledon since 2005:
Year Result
2005 Second round
2006 Fourth round
2007 Semifinal
2008 Second round
2009 Quarterfinal
2010 Semifinal
2011 Winner
2012 Semifinal
2013 Final
2014 Winner
2015 Winner
2016 Third round
2017 Quarterfinals
2018 Winner
2019 Winner
2021 Winner
2022 Winner
2023 Final
