Novak Djokovic respects Roger Federer, who was one of his greatest rivals on the ATP Tour, and he showed it also months after the Swiss Maestro's retirement.
The 21-time Grand Slam champion was dominant in his quarterfinal match against Andrey Rublev, and after the match, he once again talked to Jim Courier in an on-court interview. Djokovic was in a very good mood and that soon turned into a tribute to Roger Federer.
Since the Serbian will play a first-time semifinalist, Tommy Paul, Jim Courier, who interviewed him, asked if he remembers his first semifinal at a Grand Slam. He responded:
"I think it was [the] US Open back in 2007. It seems quite a long time ago, actually, now. I was fortunate to win that semi-final, but in the final, I lost to Roger [Federer]."
When Djokovic said Federer's name, the crowd erupted, and the 21-time Grand Slam champion took a chance to pay tribute to the recently retired legend.
"Let us give him a big round of applause, to Roger, guys. He deserves it! I had some great battles over the years with Roger, that is for sure. Tennis misses him, for sure."
"I have seen him dressing up very sharply for [Paris] Fashion Week the other day! I have seen him skiing. I want to challenge him for a little skiing race in a few years’ time. But, yeah, he is enjoying life, for sure, it is nice to see that. Obviously for tennis, he has been one of the most important players ever to play the game. So, big regards to his family.”
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