It is no secret that Novak Djokovic loves playing more in the night sessions than the day ones at the Australian Open. The 10-time champion himself has admitted the same publicly on multiple occasions. And yet, despite all his achievements and top seeding, Djokovic continues to be given day matches by the tournament organisers. Ardent supporters of Novak Djokovic have cried foul over this by accusing them of bias against their favorite player.
Interestingly, back in 2018, Novak Djokovic had spoken up about the issue. This was days after Roger Federer admitting that he had requested the organisers to only provide him with evening/night matches and they agreed to provide him with the same throughout the tournament. And it could have been ‘preferential treatment’ towards him, according to the Swiss superstar.
This meant that in case Djokovic’s matches clashed with Federer’s later in the day, the latter was favored. This could also be because of Roger Federer having the ability back then to grab more eyeballs across the world, making him a marketer’s as well as a broadcaster’s delight. The Serb hinted at the same in an explosive interview, claiming that ‘the sport has become an industry’.
Novak Djokovic denied ‘requesting’ organisers for night matches like Roger Federer did, but was not happy with the development. During day matches, the chances of heat strokes increase in Melbourne, also keeping in mind the humidity which is not good for recovery either. Djokovic claimed that ‘he was pushed to the limit’ physically after one of his 4-set wins over Gael Monfils in the 2018 edition.
Co-incidentally, Federer went on to win the Australian Open that year, defending back-to-back titles, while Djokovic was knocked out in the fourth round. Djokovic was quoted as saying in a press conference, what also potentially looked like taking a subtle dig at the organisers for preferring Federer –
“The conditions were brutal. We both struggled. Maybe he struggled a bit more at the end of the second set, entire third set. That’s where I managed to get on top of him. It was a big challenge for both of us to be able to finish the match.
“Our sport has become an industry. It’s more business than a sport. At times I don’t like that. Of course we’re all blessed to have great financial compensation, great lives. I’m very grateful for that.
“At the same time, what is most important for us is our health and what happens after our careers, after you’re 30, 35. There are many players [who] can’t physically walk, run, jog, whatever. They’re struggling some way or another, health-wise or physiologically.
“You have to understand what the player goes through. There is no indication that we’re going to have any discussion for a shorter season or anything like it. We’re just adding events, official events, unofficial events.
“It feels, from a player’s perspective, that you’re always in a rush. You’re always obliged to play the mandatory events. You have always a big challenge to defend points because it affects everything. You’re always constantly, week after week, being part of that dynamic of our sport. At times it seem a bit too much.
“But it’s our choice at the same time. So I don’t want to sound ungrateful. On the contrary, I’m very grateful. But I also think that there should be some kind of rational conversation about rules that are maybe imposed or certain things that are concerning players’ well-being.”
How Novak Djokovic riled up Roger Federer in his early days
Recently at the Australian Open, Novak Djokovic brought up Roger Federer to explain that he was one ‘senior’ player who did not like the Serb’s behavior on the ATP Tour during his younger days. Djokovic claimed that he had no shame in publicly stating at the time that he would beat all the best players to become the No.1 player in the world, a prophecy which he actually went on to fulfill.
Novak Djokovic believes that he never meant any disrespect for Roger Federer and that young players should take his example to draw the line between confidence and arrogance. Djokovic was taking another shot at Ben Shelton, the 20-year-old American youngster, who was accused of poor on-court behavior in the US Open 2023 semifinal against the champion.
Novak Djokovic hasn’t won a lot of support for those comments, even as Daniil Medvedev in his press conference after that, spoke about how the Serb has always encouraging to younger players like him and that there is more to his on-court persona. Roger Federer fans jumped in the conversation by claiming that Djokovic would never get as much adulation universally as their favorite player and shouldn’t be talking about respect and behavior since apparently, the Serb himself is not the best example of the same.
On Tuesday early morning ET, Novak Djokovic will take on Taylor Fritz in his 58th Grand Slam quarterfinal, which is another record of Roger Federer’s that he has equalled.
