"Novak Djokovic's the most arrogant; Been over a month, he's still coming up with excuses": Serb's latest remark on Australian Open loss angers fans
Novak Djokovic's latest remarks on his loss to Jannik Sinner in the semifinal of the Australian Open 2024 have angered many tennis fans online.
Djokovic suffered a crushing 6-1, 6-2, 6-7 (6), 6-3 defeat at the hands of eventual champion Sinner on Friday, January 26. This was notably the Serb's first-ever loss in the semifinal of the Australian Open, a tournament he has won a record ten times.
The World No. 1 recently reflected on the loss in an interaction with the media at the Indian Wells Masters and suggested he was not able to prepare properly for the Melbourne Major.
"I didn't feel like I really had the proper time to rest and to do a proper preparation block like maybe I would normally do," he said. "But it is what it is. I don't think I played my best tennis in Australia, whereas Jannik did, and he was just a far better player than me that day. And after that, he made an incredible comeback in the final and won his first title. So it was absolutely deserved."
Tennis buffs on X (formerly Twitter) claimed that the Serb's assessment was nothing but an excuse. One fan suggested that Sinner outclassed Djokovic completely.
"Djokovic is 100% the most arrogant player on tour. It has been over a month since that match and he is still coming up with excuses. Sinner was the better player! Period," a fan wrote.
Another fan noted that the 24-time Grand Slam champion uttered similar words following his loss to Carlos Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final in 2023.
"This guy can never just admit the better player won on the day. He said something similar after his loss to Alcaraz at Wimbledon. Seems OK with the loss on the day, makes a show of praising the victor then comes up with excuses a few weeks later," the fan wrote.
Here are a few more reactions from X:
Novak Djokovic leads Jannik Sinner 4-3 in terms of head-to-head
Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner have played against each other seven times, including the Australian Open semifinal clash. The Serb holds a slim lead of 4-3 in terms of their head-to-head.
Djokovic first faced Sinner in the year 2021 at the Monte-Carlo Masters and registered a comfortable 6-4, 6-2 win. He doubled his lead with another win a few months later, defeating the Italian in the Wimbledon quarterfinals en route to lifting the trophy.
The 36-year-old defeated Sinner again at the London Major in 2023 in the semifinals, but the Iatter opened his account in the round-robin stages of the ATP Finals later that year. He managed a 7-5, 6-7(5), 7-6(2) win over the Serb before losing to him in the final of the same event a couple of days later.
A few months later, however, Jannik Sinner trumped Novak Djokovic in the a singles battle in the semifinal of the Davis Cup to take Italy into the finals and eventually lift the trophy.