For the past few seasons, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal‘s profound popularity has often been evident in their hold on the ATP Fans’ Favorite Award. From 2003 to 2021, the accolade was given to the Swiss maestro, while his former Spanish colleague also won it the previous season. Now with Federer’s retirement and Nadal missing out on this entire tennis calendar, another player from the ‘Big 3,’ Novak Djokovic was touted to win this award in the 2023 season.

However, it has now come as a huge surprise that the Serbian tennis player has failed to emerge as the popular choice among voters despite having won three Grand Slam titles this year. Djokovic’s ATP award failure now raises a lot of questions about his popularity, which might have been largely affected by the overwhelming influence of his arch-rivals, Federer and Nadal.

The tennis community has often put Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal ahead of Novak Djokovic

Despite his ‘GOAT’ stature in the tennis realm, the Serbian tennis superstar continues to be the subject of negativity from the public. From the Grand Slam to the Masters 1000 events, Novak Djokovic has won it all, yet he will not have the universal love of fans, according to the former tennis pro, Marion Bartoli‘s previous disclosures.

In an interview with Tennis365.com, the former Wimbledon champion asserted that the Serb has failed to emerge as the popular choice among fans due to the bad timing of his emergence on the men’s tour. While talking about some of the fierce rivalries in the history of the sport that have often piqued the interest of the tennis community, Bartoli stated that fans are not used to having a third one.

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“The third one feels like the disruptor. You want to cheer for one or the other. You say ‘I was to cheer for Roger’ or ‘I want to cheer for Rafa’. You don’t want the third one that comes in and wins everything,” she said. Notably, the French former tennis player claimed that if the 24-time single Grand Slam champion had played just one other fierce competitor, he would have had a much bigger fan base.

“If Novak had played just one other player, I think he would have had a much bigger fan base,” Bartoli added. Aside from the former Grand Slam champion, another big name in the tennis community, Patrick Mouratoglou, opened up about how the current world No. 1 player is ‘not as liked’ as his arch-rivals, Federer and Nadal.

Patrick Mouratoglou on how the fan base is ‘less’ for Djokovic

In a conversation with Tennishead.net, Serena Williams‘ former coach issued his take on the biggest strengths of each of the members of the famed trinity. Despite hailing Djokovic as ‘superior’ to the other two in the ‘Big 3′ in terms of his ‘willingness to be better,’ Patrick Mouratoglou asserted that the Serb still has a smaller fan base.

With his sheer determination and champion mentality, the French coach said that Nole ‘loves to prove’ his naysayers wrong. However, Mouratoglou added, “The fact that there were so many fans for the two others [Nadal and Federer] and less for him that he was not as liked as the two others, I felt that it created in him the will to make revenge one way or the another.”

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The renowned tennis coach said he believed the Serb’s desire for more success on the court stemmed from having a lesser fanbase than that of Federer and Nadal. Just like Mouratoglou, the French former tennis player Yannick Noah also expressed his views on the ‘Big 3’ that has shaped the modern era of men’s tennis. In a previous interview, the tennis veteran suggested that he believes that Djokovic is not in the league of his arch-rivals, as Federer and Nadal have ‘more charisma.’

Given the assertions issued by these prominent figures in the tennis realm, the Serb’s popularity might have been largely affected by the profound influence of his arch-rivals. Despite winning three Grand Slam titles and also reaching the number 1 ranking, Djokovic has failed to win the ATP Fans’ Favorite Award, which was given to his young Italian colleague, Jannik Sinner.

What do you think of the Serbian tennis legend missing out on the fan’s favorite award despite his remarkable season? Let us know in the comments section.

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