Novak Djokovic, Forever The Interloper
He might be the greatest tennis player of all time, but his latest incredible Wimbledon triumph begs the question: Will Djoker ever be truly loved?
Amidst the introspection, the celebration, and the outright jubilation that followed Novak Djokovic’s fifth Wimbledon Championship, there was a moment, during the Serbian star’s post-match press conference, that was, in its way, darkly comedic.
“When the crowd is chanting ‘Roger!”, I hear ‘Novak!’” explained Djokovic, with a shrug of his shoulders, “I know. It sounds silly, but it is like that, I try to convince myself of that.”
The answer came with a knowing smirk from the champ, and laughter from the assembled press, but upon reflection, through a certain lens, it was every bit as somber as it was droll. Here was a now 16-time grand slam champion, in his absolute prime at the age of 32, by any standard one of the greatest tennis players in history, lamenting the fact that all he can do, on his sport’s most sacred ground, is imagine the crowd supporting him, in lieu of actual cheers.
“I knew the atmosphere will be what it was,” said Djokovic, who can add soothsaying to his innumerable skills on the court. What it was, of course, was a roundly partisan crowd, firmly behind his adversary, a stance that had very little to do with Djokovic himself, and everything to do with his rival. Just weeks from his 38th birthday, Roger Federer was bidding to make history as the oldest grand slam winner in history, and despite the remarkable way in which the Swiss legend has eluded the typical deteriorations of time, there is still a sense, inevitable at this late stage of his career, that any major final could be his last.
No such sense yet exists for Djokovic, whose fitness, versatility, and newfound composure all but guarantees that there will be championships still to come. We’ll see plenty of Novak, one can almost imagine buzzing through the grandstands at the All England Club, so for now, we’re going to root for the other guy.
If that seems perhaps a little unfair, well, welcome to life as the man whose only mistake was arriving fashionably late to the greatest era of tennis the world has ever known. When Djokovic won his first slam, in 2008, Federer was already 12 trophies deep in his historic run. By the time Djokovic broke through for a second time, in 2011, Rafael Nadal appeared to have cemented his place as Federer’s tormentor, and generational rival, completing his own career slam, and punctuating his rise with a 2008 Wimbledon Final that is still widely considered the greatest match in history.
It was inevitable then, once Djokovic arrived on the scene, a touch more emotional, candid, and haughty than his peers, that he was destined to become perhaps the greatest third wheel in sports history. Tennis already had its sublime golden era rivalry, as the smooth, effortless, ever-composed game of Federer matched up perfectly with the all-out, physical, exhausting style favored by Nadal. Who was this interloper, inserting himself into a clash of the titans that had no need for another combatant?
Well, as it turns out, he might just be the best to ever do it, even if choosing one of these three men over the others feels less like quantitative analysis, and more like a racket Rorschach test. There is quite obviously no wrong answer here, and the last decade has revealed that the trio isn’t simply competing with one another, but collaborating to see just how long they can fight off the generation that follows them, and extend their dominance over a timeline that was inconceivable before they came along.
Never was that more clear than the past two weeks in London, where a number of highly touted youngsters (Dominic Thiem, Alexander Zverev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Karen Khachanov, Daniil Medvedev, Felix Auger-Aliassime), all exited in the tournament’s first week. This new generation may well have its own moment, down the line, but in this tourney they did as so many have before them, ceding the stage once more to the “Big Three” of men’s tennis.
Those three did what they generally do with such a stage, with Federer and Nadal trading momentum over the course of four captivating sets in the semifinals, as a prelude to Sunday’s incredible finale. As expected, Federer was every bit as aggressive as he needed to be, dialing up the bludgeoning, powerful serve that becomes an unparalleled weapon on the grass, every time he felt threatened in a big moment. Conversely, Djokovic was ever the counter-puncher, relying on his incomparable return game to keep his opponent off-balance, and doing just enough to see three tie-breakers, all of which he took down through the sheer completeness of his game. While neither man played anything approaching the best tennis of his life, complaining about a lesser Picasso is sort of missing the point.
Roger had more than his share chances at a record-setting win, including a pair of championship points in the fifth set that will likely haunt him for some time, should this indeed prove to be one of his last opportunities. Then again, were it not for a 2019 rule change that mandated a fifth set tiebreak at 12–12, the two men might still be doing battle, captivating the crowd and keeping the British Royal Family from getting back to… whatever the British Royal Family actually does.
Instead, it was Djoker holding the trophy and addressing a crowd that could never really be on his side, not under these circumstances. There was a time when such indifference might have rankled, but as he too has grown older, and more circumspect, he appears to have gravitated to a grudging acceptance of his situation. And while he would never dream of apologizing for his victory, he made sure to take time in his acceptance speech to pay his own tribute to the man that still holds the fans in the palm of his hand.
“Roger said that he hopes that he gives some other people a chance to believe that they can do it at 37,” Djokovic proclaimed from Centre Court, “I’m one of them.”
Maybe then, sometime in 2024, Novak Djokovic will finally get the adoration and enthusiasm that he’s long deserved. He’ll be 37 himself at that point, and presumably, Roger and Rafa will have finally slowed down and moved along to retirement, (although who can say for sure?!) A whole host of young tennis whippersnappers will likely be knocking at the door, trying to shove him aside to make room for a new era. But perhaps then, a Wimbledon crowd that doesn’t want to let go of the last link to the greatest generation they’ll ever see, will actually be chanting the words he can now only imagine, “Novak! Novak! Novak!”
He’ll be one of the greatest of all time then, just as he is now. But on occasion, the very best things in life take a long time to be properly appreciated.
I know. it sounds silly, but it really is like that, sometimes.
