Tennis
‘You guys can’t touch me’ – Djokovic calls out ‘disrespectful’ fans at Wimbledon
Novak Djokovic hit out at Wimbledon fans after his victory against Holger Rune on Monday evening.
Djokovic might be the biggest star in tennis right now but Rune has brought quite the fanbase with him from Denmark to Wimbledon this year.
During the 21-year-old’s epic clash against the 24-time Grand Slam winner, there was loud support for Rune from the Danish at Centre Court who would chant his name.
However, to Djokovic, it appeared that they were booing him – and he got his own back.
After claiming the second set 6-4, the Serbian was seen booing the fans back, or at least making some fun of the situation by appearing to taunt them.
He stared them down after winning the second set before going on to cruise to victory before unleashing on the crowd in his on-court interview.
“To all the fans that have respect for me tonight, thank you very much from the bottom of my heart. I appreciate it,” Djokovic said post-match.
“And to all those people who have chosen to disrespect a player, in this case me, have a gooooooodddd night!”
“Gooodddd night, goooddd night! Very good night.”
When journalist Rishi Persad suggested the boos Djokovic believes he was getting may have been chants of Rune’s name, Djokovic responded: “They were [disrespecting me]. I don’t accept it. No, no no.
“I know they were cheering for Rune, but that’s an excuse to also boo. Listen, I’ve been on the tour for 20 years so trust me I know all the tricks, I know how it works.
“It’s fine. I focus on the respectful people. They have respect, they pay the ticket to come and watch tonight and love tennis and appreciate the players and the effort they put in.
“I played in much more hostile environments, you guys can’t touch me.”
Djokovic went on to beat Rune in straight sets 6-3 6-4 6-2 despite appearing to have some stomach troubles.
There was a moment in the first set when the 37-year-old asked the umpire if he could go for a bathroom break and was told he had just 45 seconds to go.
Eventually, he had no choice and made for the toilet before re-emerging swiftly after.
Nevertheless, Djokovic still looked a level above throughout the contest – finishing the match with a ruthless strike that left Rune all ends up.
Crowning off his victory, he pulled out another violin celebration for his smiling daughter in the crowd.
Rune, meanwhile, was applauded off Centre Court, and received a loud and final ‘RUNE’ as he exited the competition.
Djokovic will face Alex De Minaur in the quarter-finals on Wednesday.