Novak Djokovic's wife, Jelena Djokovic, says she feels her husband's fanbase consists mainly of people with ordinary jobs rather than wealthy individuals.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion's achievements would be inspiring regardless of his background, but they are even more incredible considering he did not have a privileged upbringing.
Djokovic's parents were not wealthy, and his formative years included Serbia facing embargoes and NATO bombings because of the Kosovo War. That led to Djokovic spending some time training in a disused swimming pool converted into a tennis court.
However, those complications did not stop Djokovic from becoming the most statistically successful tennis player ever and creating memorable rivalries with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.
Djokovic played the last match of his rivalry with Nadal at the Six Kings Slam exhibition in Saudi Arabia last week, defeating him in straight sets. The Serbian paid an emotional tribute to his old rival afterward.
A recurring feature of his matches against Nadal and Federer was his two great rivals receiving much more crowd support. That sometimes morphed into disrespect of Djokovic, including occasionally being booed by some of the crowd before contests against Nadal and Federer.
Djokovic still had millions of fans worldwide throughout his career, and respect for the former world No. 1 has undoubtedly increased in recent years. For example, he was given vocal backing in the 2021 US Open final against Daniil Medvedev, although he lost it in straight sets.
In an interview with La Nacion, Jelena outlined how her husband's background makes him connect with ordinary people with everyday jobs, rather than with those who are richer.
"When we look at what is happening in the world, tennis is such a small prism of life, but it brings happiness to people. It brings joy. It brings hope. And there is something like that that he wants to leave."
"I like to see him as a champion of the common people. Not of the rich people. Because he is a common man who comes from a very simple family, from a family of workers and dreamers."
Jelena discussed her experiences of traveling around the world with the Olympic gold medalist and meeting people who feel connected to his story, but who cannot always afford to buy tickets for his matches.
"And traveling around the world you see a lot of people who are inspired by his story because they are also similar to him. So, tennis is a very luxurious sport, a white sport, a sport of rich people… But Novak’s fans are ordinary people, people with an ordinary job and they can’t always afford to have tickets to go see his matches."
Djokovic's wife also said the energy he receives from his fans helps him to stay motivated and keep working, even though he has already won everything.
"When you walk down the street and you see the workers who build buildings or whatever, they shout: ‘Hey, Novak! ’ Everyone stops him. I think that is what gives him the power and the energy to keep going. Even though he has already achieved everything, I think his greatest victory is being a champion of the people, yes. He is the people's champion."