Imago
Roger Federer of Switzerland and Novak Djokovic of Serbia hold their trophies as they walk off Centre Court after the Men’s Singles Final during the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club at Wimbledon in London, England.
Imago
Roger Federer of Switzerland and Novak Djokovic of Serbia hold their trophies as they walk off Centre Court after the Men’s Singles Final during the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club at Wimbledon in London, England.
When Carlos Alcaraz defeated Novak Djokovic twice in Wimbledon, people thought it might be a sign of the Serb’s final days on the professional court. However, Djokovic proved them all wrong, basking in the glory of Olympic gold last Sunday. Winning at an age when athletes have usually long retired, Djokovic garnered a lot of praise from the tennis fraternity except for one person, Roger Federer. As Djokovic fans point it out with sheer frustration, they recall how their icon was ignored by the Swiss in the past.
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The Serb avenged his Wimbledon final defeat against Alcaraz with a tough 7-6(3), 7-6(2). Djokovic’s victory was truly unimaginable for many, as hardly anybody believed he would achieve this brilliant feat at the latter stage of his career. The Serb’s gold medal feat in the Paris Olympics received a heck load of compliments from renowned personalities. From Rafael Nadal and Juan M del Potro to Matthew McConaughey, everyone simply praised the efforts of the Serb to complete a career golden slam.
However, the problem arose when Djokovic fans couldn’t find Federer’s comment about his old rival Olympic achievement. On Federer’s Instagram comments, Djokovic fans unleashed their anger for Federer not congratulating their favorite. Fans directly questioned Federer, “Where are your words for Novak? He has outclassed you in every way.” Another fan termed him “jealous” and asked, “don’t you congratulate Novak?” Djokovic fans’ comments screamed their disappointment with Federer.
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Federer’s ig comments 😭😭😭
Finally people realising that he’s the saltiest champion ever.. pic.twitter.com/po1M3NHS24
— SK (@Djoko_UTD) August 6, 2024
Given that the Serb won a gold medal at 37, everyone expected Federer to show some courtesy and acknowledge Djokovic’s brilliance in the sport. Several tennis stars stepped forward to praise Djoko. Even his opponent, Alcaraz, said, “I leave with an incredible silver medal ❤️ and with my head held high after a tremendous battle today! Congratulations @DjokerNole for that gold that you have sought so much 🤝🏻.“
Now that the former Swiss played refrained from doing so, it angered the tennis community, as they flame him no holds barred. While Djokovic fans shared their opinions directly on Federer’s social media, the Serb had his moment after winning his most desired gold medal in the Olympics. But they were still disappointed remembering how the same thing happened last year during the US Open.
Novak Djokovic fans slammed Federer last year for a similar reason
The feud between Djokovic fan and Federer fans has a long past, but it escalated when the Swiss legend forgot to congratulate Djokovic on the latter’s 24th Grand Slam win in the 2023 US Open. When both Federer and Nadal didn’t drop their best wishes for the Serb, Djokovic fans wrote, “The bitterness of Federer and Nadal towards Djokovic records and achievements is so blatant and I don’t understand why people just accept and acknowledge that and realize that they are just not players with amazing sportsmanship and never have been.”
Given that Federer complimented Coco Gauff as she won the women’s singles, fans were outraged witnessing his selective praise for athletes. “Roger did congratulate Coco [Gauff, who won the women’s US Open], so this looks even worse,” said one Djokovic fan.
Federer’s ignorance about Djokovic’s big win at the Paris Olympics asks an important question to everyone: can athletes be friends? While Federer and Djokovic bonding didn’t work out well, people wish the young generation would change and bring new hope to the field.
Written by
Edited by
Ripunjay Gaba