Novak Djokovic experienced something he's very familiar with during his clash with Alejandro Davidovich Fokina at Roland Garros.
Djokovic was battling Davidovich Fokina in a pretty decent match overall and the crowd was heavily involved. Davidovich Fokina is a very likable player and as an underdog, he had the crowd behind him, especially as he was playing a good match.
That support crossed the line a bit when the crowd started booing Djokovic for pretty standard stuff on the tennis court. After a very close second set, Djokovic celebrated heavily which earned him booes. He then took a medical timeout in between sets two and three and once again got booed.
Djokovic didn't particularly like it talking about it after the match during his press conference. Former player John McEnroe also didn't get it as he revealed to Eurosport, even though he's been one to talk about the lack of respect for Djokovic from fans for a long time.
Why do they boo? Everyone does it [take a medical time-out]. It’s totally legal, you’re allowed to work and rub his legs! Where’s Davidoch Fokina? He’s off to the bathroom. I totally get his reaction. Are you kidding me? Are you going to boo for this? The other guy’s not even on the court! Change the rules if you don’t want to let a guy get worked on, but don’t start doing that. It’s absurd!"
McEnroe then used the opportunity to talk about Djokovic's career which has seen him battling the crowd for much of his career. Any time he faced Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal on the court, Djokovic faced the crowd along with them.
Let’s be real. That’s what he’s been battling his whole career; inspiring and pushing him. It ends up that it actually helped him, in a weird way. So as an athlete, if you had a choice between love or respect, you’d love to have both. You’d rather have respect.
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