Serbian tennis star, Novak Djokovic, recently shocked onlookers by stating that he wanted to be jeered at Wimbledon. This unusual effort has sparked interest and prompted inquiries regarding Djokovic’s motivation. Despite his incredible success in the competition, Djokovic feels that the crowd’s support spurs his competitive spirit and allows him to demonstrate his winning skills.
This fascinating finding contradicts the idea that sportsmen only succeed on consistent support and adoration by providing a rare insight into the thinking of a champion.
Novak Djokovic faces hostile Wimbledon crowd
With his recent dominance at Wimbledon, Novak Djokovic sought to surpass Roger Federer’s record of the most Open Era titles won at SW19. To his displeasure, the championships this year had a less supportive environment for him. Despite defeating Pedro Cachin and Jordan Thompson in his first two rounds, Djokovic encountered distractions and animosity from the crowd, especially during the match against Thompson.
Even though the icon has dealt with similar situations throughout his career, he found it difficult to accept the jeers. Djokovic answered, clamping his palm over his ear to show his fury, saying that the resistance of the audience just makes him more determined to win.
While most players would rather have the bulk of the fans cheering for them, Djokovic understands that difficulty spurs his competitive spirit and demonstrates his winning attitude. However, he wishes to participate in a more cordial and encouraging setting because he does not want to play in a hostile one.
Djokovic sends stern message to belligerence
Novak Djokovic, often experienced tension with spectators across the world. Despite winning Wimbledon seven times, he regularly faces jeers and heckling from onlookers. Djokovic recently defeated Jordan Thompson in the Wimbledon second round, and following the match, he admitted that he views the opposition of the audience as a benefit.
The Serbian tennis player believes that the more the audience boos him, the better it is for him. The negative feedback fuels a fire within of him that compels him to give it his all and establish himself as a victor.
While Djokovic agreed that he prefers to have the audience on his side, he also observed that this supportive atmosphere only occurs sometimes. But he takes comfort in the knowledge that the hostility from the audience gives him more drive and energy to triumph over his adversaries.
Djokovic highlighted his aim to steer clear of hostile environments and have the majority of spectators root for him while acknowledging the complicated relationships between players and the public. He has, however, learned to accept the fact that the public frequently supported his rivals during his career.
Regarding their responses, he experiences conflicted feelings and occasionally finds it difficult to understand them. However, Djokovic feels obligated to reply and react when he hears more outrageous remarks from the audience. He gains extra motivation from these circumstances, which have occurred in important tournaments all around the world, and they motivate him to improve.
In essence, Djokovic accepts the opposing audience emotions and uses their jeers as motivation to push forward to even greater success on the tennis field.