So often the pantomime villain, Novak Djokovic stayed true to form at Roland Garros this afternoon as he dumped Rafael Nadal out of the Olympics.
The man who took gold in 2008 has now failed in his quest to claim a second – although he does remain in contention for glory in the doubles with Carlos Alcaraz.
In fairness, this was a bit of a mismatch and Djokovic thoroughly deserved his 6-1, 6-4 victory over Nadal who has won 14 French Open titles at Roland Garros.
Djokovic raced out of the blocks and at 6-1 and 4-0 up, it looked as though this would prove to be a seriously embarrassing day for Nadal.
However, the crowd were treated to a spectacle in the second set and once again Djokovic wasn’t impressed with the spectators watching his match.
Why Novak Djokovic was booed during win over Rafael Nadal
There is just no pleasing Djokovic. A few weeks on from his petulant comments after beating Holger Rune at Wimbledon, the Serbian has had his feather ruffled again.
Nadal made a game of this from 4-0 down in the second set. He got the crowd – who simply wanted to see a close game – firmly fighting his corner by winning four games on the trot.
However, Djokovic did what he so often does and produced a stunning ninth game against the serve to ensure that he would be serving for the match.
As he walked back to his seat, the 37-year-old stuck his fingers to his ears – seemingly less than satisfied that the crowd had spent the whole game cheering for Nadal.
The Roland Garros crowd reciprocated his latest petulant act with a chorus of boos that the serial Grand Slam winner simply found amusing.
Djokovic served out the contest like the true champion that he is and he will now look to go all the way in his quest for a gold medal to add to his collection of career titles.
Djokovic craves crowd adulation – but these acts won’t help him
Did Novak really expect that the crowd would favour him over a player who has been the darling of Paris for his entire career?
Nadal has always had a strong backing at Roland Garros and the 14-time winner is the most successful player in history at the venue.
Furthermore, the fans will have craved a close game here and surely, whoever Djokovic has been dismantling would have got the same level of backing in that situation.
Clearly, the Serb just wants to be loved. However, these acts just come across as extremely insecure and as it’s been showcased at Wimbledon and Olympics, it’s not a good way to get the fans on your side.
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