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Tennis fans were left baffled by a commentator drawing a comparison between Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Rafael Nadal's backgrounds in response to the Serb's heated exchange with a heckler at the 2024 Australian Open.
Djokovic took on Alexei Popyrin in a thrilling second-round clash at the Australian Open. The Serb secured a hard-fought 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(4), 6-3 victory over Popyrin to keep his title defense alive at the Melbourne Slam.
Beyond the riveting on-court action, the match also garnered attention for a dramatic confrontation between the 24-time Grand Slam and a heckler in the stands. In the fourth set, a spectator provoked Djokovic with his disruptive yells, prompting the World No. 1 to challenge him by shouting:
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"Come and say that in my face!"
Aside from the incident itself, tennis fans were also intrigued by a commentator's take on the matter. The commentator asserted that Novak Djokovic, having grown up in war-torn Serbia, had developed a "different backbone" compared to Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, who were raised in the more peaceful environments of Switzerland and Mallorca, respectively.
"This guy grew up with NATO Bombs being dropped around him, that gives you a different backbone... Federer grew up in the clean air of Switzerland. And Nadal in sunny, balmy Mallorca!," the commentator said.
Fans were left bewildered by the remark, with one of them deeming it the most "absurd" reason to reignite the debate regarding the Big 3.
"This is by far the most absurd reason to bring up the debate between the big 3," the fan posted.
"Every time I think discourse around the Big 3 has reached peak derangement I’m proven wrong," another fan wrote.
Meanwhile, other fans pointed out that even Nick Kyrgios in the commentary box appeared to be perplexed by it.
"Haha I thought this was a bizarre thing to say as well, he even reiterated the Djokovic with NATO bombs sentence. Even Kyrgios on co-comms seemed a bit confused what to say," a fan commented.
"That was my favorite bit. Kyrgios being speechless!" another fan chimed in.
Here are a few more reactions from fans:
Novak Djokovic on his heated exchange with heckler: "I'm frustrated, I don't want to be experiencing that"
Following his win, Novak Djokovic shared his thoughts on his heated exchange with the fan. The Serb admitted that the incident had left him feeling "upset" and "frustrated," emphasizing his desire to avoid such disruptions during his matches.
"It does [upset me]. I'm not going to sit and say it's all good. It's not good. Of course, it upsets me. I'm frustrated. I don't want to be experiencing that, but I have to accept it as it is," he said during his post-match press conference.
The Serb also clarified that although he never asked for the chair umpire to intervene, he would not hesitate to respond himself if he felt a fan had crossed the line.
"There's no issue in terms of I never asked anyone to leave the stadium. I never asked the chair umpire to take somebody out," he said.
"But if somebody crosses the line, I'm going to take it to him, as I did to this guy, ask him if he wants to come closer and tell me what he wants to tell me. Offend me, insult me as he did. That's all it is. He was not really keen on coming down. That's what it was," he said.
Novak Djokovic will lock horns with Tomas Martin Etcheverry in the third round of the Australian Open. Etcheverry triumphed over Gael Monfils in straight sets to book his place against the Serb.
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