Novak Djokovic has now moved one step further in establishing his legacy of being regarded the greatest of all time in tennis history after he won his record-breaking 23rd Grand Slam title on Sunday. He registered this empathic record by defeating fourth seed Casper Ruud in straight sets. While few will doubt the Serbian’s star-studded qualities in the sport, he once joked about being relieved that Lewis Hamilton decided to choose a sport other than tennis.
Last year, Hamilton had taken to his social media account and posted a childhood image of his. The 38-year-old captioned his post as, “Coming soon“. On viewing the post, Djokovic took it as a fantastic opportunity to compliment the Briton and also create some fantastic humor in the process.
“Good that you chose car racing“: Novak Djokovic on Lewis Hamilton
Novak Djokovic is famously given the nickname of the ‘Djoker‘ because of his knack of creating some fantastic humor. And after he read Lewis Hamilton‘s post from last year, he did not disappoint.
The Serbian hilariously replied, “By the way, good that you chose car racing instead of tennis. Otherwise, we all would be in trouble“.
Djokovic made these remarks out of respect for Hamilton, who is considered to be one of the greatest of all time in F1. The Briton is one of the only two drivers alongside the legendary Michael Schumacher to win seven world championships. Hamilton achieved this record during the 2020 season.
Hamilton once referred to Djokovic as the ‘best‘
Lewis Hamilton also shares the same level of respect for Novak Djokovic. In an interview with Sky Sports back in 2016, the Briton described the Serbian as “the best at the moment“.
Hamilton made these remarks about Djokovic a year after the Serbian almost completed the Calendar Grand Slam. The 36-year-old tennis star came agonizingly close on achieving the unthinkable in 2015 as he won three Grand Slams and only lost out in the final of Roland Garros.
Hamilton stated on that occasion that what he loves most about Djokovic is the Serbian’s relentless desire to get better. The Mercedes driver stated that although Djokovic may have weaknesses, he has the ability to convert them into his strengths.
Djokovic will now set his sights on London, hoping to win a joint-record of eight Wimbledon titles. If the Serbian is able to do so, he will also join Margaret Court as the only two players in history to win 24 Grand Slams.
