Novak Djokovic is at the peak of his powers at the moment, there are barely any players on the ATP World Tour that can beat him.
So why is his father picking a fight with Roger Federer? For something that happened ten years ago.
What Happened?
Srdjan Djokovic feels as though the Swiss maestro disrespected his son in the 2006 Davis Cup during a rubber between Djokovic and Stan Wawrinka.
The then 19-year-old continuously called for the trainer claiming that he was having trouble breathing during the match, with Federer labeling the frequent calls for assistance as a ‘joke’.
“Novak was just 19 at the time,” Srdjan said in an interview with Newsweek Europe.
“He had a deviation of his sinuses and couldn’t breathe. And Federer tried in every possible way to disrespect him because of his breathing problem,”
“He showed himself to be the best player in the world but not as a good person at that time.”
He then went on to say that he is surprised Federer is still playing, hinting that the 17-time Grand Slam champion is too old.
Now For Rafa
The Serbian also took aim at Rafael Nadal, saying that the Spaniard and Federer have been bitter since Djokovic has taken the mantle as the world number one.
“Nadal was his best friend while he was winning. When things changed, they were no longer friends. This is not sport,” he said.
Djokovic Senior is also more than quietly confident that his son will surpass Federer as the greatest tennis player of all time.
“He will be the best tennis player in history,” he said.
“I have been saying it since he entered tennis. Surely, he will be one of the best sportsmen ever. All of it is because he was sent from God.”
Get Over It
All of this bitterness is ridiculous, and the arrogance towards Federer and Nadal is uncalled for here. The incident with Federer happened ten years ago, and it would be smart to assume that Djokovic would not have wanted to be involved in this issue during a big tournament.
Srdjan Djokovic needs to get over it, his son certainly has, look at the tennis he has produced over the past five years. It is also a known fact that Federer and Nadal are more upstanding within the tennis community than Djokovic, and why is it that if Federer and Nadal were sore losers, wouldn’t they be sworn enemies?
