"It's so ridiculous that you're accusing someone of something like that" - Mats Wilander believes Novak Djokovic has no reason to fake injury
Seven-time Major champion Mats Wilander has come out in support of Novak Djokovic in light of the latter being accused of faking a hamstring injury at the ongoing Australian Open.
Djokovic sustained a hamstring injury during his semifinal clash against Daniil Medvedev at the Adelaide International 1. He has gone on to win five straight matches since then, dropping just two sets. While he has not looked too hindered by his injury overall, there have been moments where it was clear that he was suffering from a considerable amount of pain.
But some fans have since taken aim at the Serb, accusing him of faking his injury. They pointed out that the nine-time champion would not have been able to coast through his matches in Melbourne had he truly been hurt.
Mats Wilander came down heavily against such accusations during a recent conversation on Eurosport. He stressed that Djokovic would never reveal an injury in the first place unless it was serious given it could provide his opponents with an upper hand.
"When you hear people talk about it in a negative (way) - it's like what are you doing? It's so ridiculous that you're accusing someone of something like that," Wilander said.
"First of all, there's no way you wanna let the locker room know you're injured first of all, unless you're injured. So, to think that it's some kind of fake is ridiculous," he added.
Wilander firmly believes that the Serb has nothing to gain from faking an injury, and added that it is not far-fetched to think that the latter is playing through pain.
"Why lose energy, why talk about it? To me, it's a completely ridiculous argument. I mean it's his thing. Of course he has pain, of course he's injured but he can play tennis and that's the only thing that matters to me," Wilander continued.
"When some other players are injured, then they are the victims, but when it is me, I am faking it" - Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic is not remotely pleased that he is constantly being accused of faking his injury. He lashed out at his detractors after his fourth-round win over Alex de Minaur on Monday, pointing out that it is always his injuries that are heavily doubted by the general public. The 21-time Major champion likely also took aim at the fact that Rafael Nadal's injuries are never questioned about.
“I leave the doubting to those people – let them doubt,” he said. "Only my injuries are questioned. When some other players are injured, then they are the victims, but when it is me, I am faking it. It is very interesting. I don’t feel that I need to prove anything to anyone."
The former World No. 1 further stressed that he has all the medical proof needed to verify his injury claims.
“I have got the MRI, ultrasound and everything else, both from two years ago and now. Whether I will publish that in my documentary or on the social media, depends on how I feel," he said. Maybe I will do it, maybe I won’t.