Two of the world’s greatest tennis players recently had a run-in with each other, causing a firestorm on social media. It started when Rafael Nadal spoke rather ill of Djokovic and his achievements in one of his interviews. Djokovic, on the other hand, responded magnanimously to Nadal’s snide remarks, saying that he respects the Spanish champion too much to speak about him in a negative light.
This year proved to be rather historic for Djokovic as he won the Australian, French, and US Opens, bringing his total grand slam victories to a staggering number of 24 and officially overtaking Nadal as the tennis player with the most victories, according to Express.
In his most recent victory at the US Open, Djokovic even paid tribute to the late Kobe Bryant, the “black mamba,” for instilling in him the “winner’s mentality” and for supporting him when he needed it most. Djokovic honored both his success and Bryant, who formerly wore the number 24 in his illustrious NBA career, by donning a shirt that said “mamba forever” on the front and the number 24 on the back after winning his 24th title.
And while most of the tennis community celebrated with Djokovic in his historic win, Nadal was rather less ecstatic about surrendering his crown to the Serbian player.
Nadal, in his interview with Spanish TV station Movistar+, said that he wasn’t really frustrated about the whole situation for the simple reason that he’s done everything he can about it. However, what came next in his interview was what really stuck with the viewers, as it painted a negative picture of Djokovic.
“I think Novak feels more intensely [about] this than I do. Had he not achieved it, it may have been a bigger frustration for him. Maybe that is why he did it. I think he has had the ability to take ambition to the maximum. I think I’ve been ambitious too but a bit healthier, which allowed me to see things in a different way.”, as per tennis majors.
Djokovic, who caught wind of Nadal’s words, was asked to respond about it in an interview with Sportal, to which he magnanimously replied:
“I’ve seen that his comments went viral, that many people spoke about it. Everyone’s entitled to their own opinion, how he interprets someone else in a certain context etc. That’s all I can say. Rafa is a great champion and I respect and appreciate him as such – as a great champion, my biggest rival and as a player who contributed to shaping my game and to results I’ve accomplished,” Djokovic said.
“I have no intention of speaking in a negative light about him or Roger Federer – my respect towards them supersedes some negative opinions I might have. Again, that’s Rafa’s opinion and I, of course, don’t agree. I have my opinion, but I won’t share it as I don’t want us to go deeper into that. There is no need for that.” he added.
🇷🇸 Novak Djokovic on Rafael Nadal’s earlier comments on the ambitions of obtaining the Major tally record:
“I’ve seen that his comments went viral, that many people spoke about it. Everyone’s entitled to their own opinion, how he interprets someone else in a certain context etc.… pic.twitter.com/inGLoJtVQY
— Olly 🎾🇬🇧 (@Olly_Tennis_) October 10, 2023
Fans have since taken to social media to express their views on the recent spat between the two titans, which has fueled a power struggle within the tennis community. Some users praised Djokovic for responding respectfully to Nadal’s comments, while others defended Nadal, saying what he said was “not disrespectful at all”.
One X user commented, “Again, Novak knows how to talk like a champion. Ironic that Nadal opening his mouth has caused him to fall behind Novak in both class AND majors.”
While another said, “Lukewarm take: Rafa said absolutely nothing disrespectful about Novak. Take a breath, Djokocult”
The photo above is from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v27M_RgrLzU; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGjvN4y5XFE