The same personal qualities that took Djokovic to the top of world tennis have brought him to the humiliation of what his brother Djordjie is calling “a migrant hotel [in] a dirty room” in Melbourne, writes Malcolm Knox | OPINION Djokovic AustralianOpen
of what his brother Djordjie is calling “a migrant hotel [in] a dirty room” in Melbourne.
Why should anyone not admire such an athlete? Since the beginning of his career, Djokovic has also made it his trademark to eliminate sportsmanship as if it were a minor round one opponent. His method is not the incendiary tantrum exploited by earlier champions such as Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe – though Djokovic is not without an explosive temper, and was disqualified from the 2020 US Open for smashing a ball in anger into a ballboy, among other occasional eruptions.
Watch footage of his nine Australian Open wins, and there is invariably a sequence where commentators Lleyton Hewitt and Jim Courier are saying, “Gee, Novak is in a lot of pain here, he’s a set down and seems to have some kind of cramp/twisted ankle/back strain/asthma attack, and he’s already a set and a break down, I can’t see him getting out of this.”Every time, they say it as if they’ve never seen it before.
More damagingly for Australian tennis, tournament director and Tennis Australia chief executive Craig Tiley will have his dealings with Djokovic fully examined in this light. Tiley is one of the most highly respected administrators in Australian and global sport. He has worked hard for that reputation.
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