Djokovic Opens Up About Feeling 'Like Unwanted Child' Next To Nadal And Federer
NewsFriday, 13 June 2025 at 19:03
Novak Djokovic opened up about his relationship with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer and how he felt when he arrived as a young, promising player.
Djokovic is, undoubtedly, the most successful tennis player of all time. Statistically, he is the greatest man to ever hold a tennis racket, and he can prove that with a long list of achievements.
Of course, the most notable of those is the record number of Grand Slam titles. It was first held by Roger Federer, then by Rafael Nadal, but ultimately, it is Novak Djokovic who will end up as the one with the most majors once they are all retired.
Now, two decades after their rivalries started, all are speaking about the past twenty years much more openly. Only recently, Djokovic, Nadal, and Federer met on the Court Philippe Chatrier during Nadal's ceremony.
Djokovic also recently had a chance to speak to the Swiss publication 20 Minuten, and in the interview, he admitted that he felt like an "unwanted child" compared to Nadal and Federer when he first made his mark on the ATP Tour.
"I acted and still felt like an unwanted child. I asked myself why that was. It hurt me. Then I thought the fans would accept me if I acted differently. But that wasn't the case either."
According to Djokovic, there were multiple reasons why he never received the same kind of affection from the fans as his two main rivals. One of those was that he "crashed" their rivalry, and the other reason was the fact that he was confident enough to speak about challenging Nadal and Federer.
"I was never as loved as Federer and Nadal because I wasn't supposed to be there. I was the little guy, the third guy who came along and said, 'I'm going to be number one.' Many people didn't like that."
During the interview, Djokovic also spoke about his relationship with the other two Big Three members. The Serbian player admitted that he never felt any hate towards Nadal and Federer.
At the same time, he admitted that while he respects both Nadal and Federer, he has always had a better relationship with the Spaniard than the Swiss Maestro.
"Just because someone is my biggest rival doesn't mean I wish them harm, hate them, or want to do anything else on the court to defeat them. We fought for the win, and the better player won. I've always respected both him and Federer; I've never said a single bad word about them and never will. I looked up to them and still do. But I've always gotten along better with Nadal."
While Nadal and Federer are already retired, Djokovic continued writing history, and he will have another attempt at rewriting some of the historic numbers at this year's Wimbledon. The Serbian could win his 25th Grand Slam title, an unprecedented achievement.
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