Fuming Djokovic hits out at lines being crossed after Wimbledon win | Tennis | Sport
A frustrated Novak Djokovic lambasted a lack of privacy in the world of tennis, as emotions ran high following his second-round Wimbledon win over Stefanos Tsitsipas. The 39-year-old was in flying form on Centre Court on Wednesday, as he surged to a 6-4 6-3 6-2 win over his Greek rival.
And as a result, he has set himself up for a third-round clash with Arthur Rinderknech, as he searches for the 25th Grand Slam title of his astonishing career to date. However, if his comments in the aftermath of the win are anything to go by, Djokovic will be pleased that he is into the twilight years of play, given just how much the sport has changed. Speaking to the media, the Serbian great said: “I believe that all sports change, but I can only speak professionally about tennis.
“In the context of today’s modern tennis and perhaps compared to that of, I don’t know, 20 years ago, let alone 30, 40, 50 years, everything has become much more demanding both physically and mentally. It’s just hard to shut yourself off completely from everything that happens off the field.
“It’s simply an integral part of the industry and sport you’re a part of. Today, there are a lot of cameras pointed at our faces every day.
“And that’s not something that was the case before. It’s getting bigger now, we have cameras in the gym, here, there, in the locker room…What’s the next camera? In the shower?
“I mean, I really don’t know, like Big Brother. But that’s just the way it is and in my opinion the limit of taste and moderation is crossed in some tournaments, but we have to get used to it. Simply, if you want to participate in the tournament, you have to accept that this is the case.”
It comes as Djokovic will have to attempt to ignore the outside noise once more and put his full concentration onto the courts of SW19, should he hope to clinch a staggering eighth Wimbledon title this summer. He last saw success at the tournament back in 2022, beating long-time rival Nick Kyrgios in the final to lift the trophy.
However, it’s been an almost three-year wait for the Belgrade-born sensation in terms of winning any of the four Grand Slams – his last major coming in the form of the 2023 US Open. That’s despite clinching Olympic gold in Paris thanks to a thrilling victory over Carlos Alcaraz.
Djokovic is set to face Rinderknech on Centre Court at 1.30pm on Friday. A win there will see him advance to the fourth round to take on either Roman Saffiulin or Joao Fonseca.
