"Roger Federer was snarky, salty, just a bad loser”; “Rafael Nadal got super xenophobic” – Fans recall duo's potshots at Novak Djokovic over the years

Tennis fans on the internet recently recalled the incidents when Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal spoke ill of Novak Djokovic. This was in response to former tennis player Younes El Aynaoui claiming that Federer and Nadal have been more gracious in defeat than Djokovic.

El Aynaoui opined that even though the Serb boasts better numbers, he would place the other two higher for being better individuals.

"Rafa and Roger have always accepted defeat better than Novak, perhaps that is why he has won more than them. But not everything is about the record, above all is the person," Aynaoui told Punto de Break.

El Aynaoui's assessment has not been received well by tennis buffs, who are now citing moments from the past where Federer and Nadal took potshots at Djokovic.

One of the fans posted a video clip from Federer's press conference where he lost to Djokovic at the 2011 US Open. His words apparently suggested that the Serb was lucky to win the match.

During a subsequent clip in the video, Nadal could be heard apparently questioning the culture Djokovic comes from. This was after a loss to the Serb in the 2020 ATP Cup final.

Another fan accused Federer of being "snarky" and "salty" at losing, saying:

"Federer was snarky, salty and just a bad loser."

Yet another fan highlighted Nadal's comments after the 2020 ATP Cup loss:

"He [El Aynaoui] seems to have forgotten Rafa got super xenophobic at atp cup 2020 toward nole’s fans. He said people from certain countries don’t know how to behave," the fan tweeted.

Here are a few more reactions from X (formerly Twitter):

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Novak Djokovic leads the head-to-head tallies against both Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer

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Novak Djokovic leads the head-to-head to tallies against both Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.

The Serb met Nadal for the first time in 2006, when the duo played for a spot in the French Open semifinals. The match, however, ended prematurely as Djokovic retired while down 4-6, 4-6.

Incidentally, their latest encounter too was a quarterfinal at Roland Garros, which also ended in Nadal's favor. Overall, however, Djokovic leads the head-to-head 30-29.

Against Federer, the 24-time Grand Slam champion has played a total of 50 matches and won 27.

They first played in 2006 at the Monte Carlo Masters where Federer defeated Djokovic 6-3, 2-6, 6-3. The duo last played against each other in 2020 at the Australian Open, where the Serb bettered the Swiss en route to his eighth Melbourne Major triumph.

Federer retired from professional tennis in September 2022.