WATCH: Novak Djokovic thrills ball kids at Paris Masters, enjoys video games and ping pong with them
Novak Djokovic took some time off from his busy preparations for the Paris Masters to have a bit of fun with the ball kids. The Serbian great joined the ball kids in the locker room and played video games and ping pong with them, much to the delight of the young fans.
Djokovic received a huge cheer from the ball kids before he left them and went on with his day.
"When @djokernole visits us, it gives us this! The #ballos is off to a great start," read a post on Instagram from the French Open ballkids account.
Djokovic's good friend Andy Murray also passed by as the Serb was playing ping pong with one of the ballkids and asked if he was winning.
"Warm-up area is always open for you @djokernole. Come back when you want with whoever you want!," read the caption of another post from RG Ballos.
Novak Djokovic has been in Paris for the last few days, training ahead of his title defense at the 2022 Paris Masters. He begins his campaign on Tuesday against American player Maxime Cressy.
The 35-year-old received a lot of praise from fans on social media earlier this week after he was spotted helping an elderly woman with her luggage at a park in Paris.
"I prefer not to be the Monster of Tennis" - Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic's incredible head-to-head record against most top players prompted a journalist to ask him whether he was the 'Tennis Monster' in light of the Halloween spirit. While the Serbian great understood the humor behind the question, he said he prefers not to be called a 'monster' because of the negativity attached to the word.
"The monster? I don't know the significance of that word in your language, but in mine is not really the best. I prefer not to be the Monster of Tennis," he said during a press conference ahead of the Paris Masters.
However, Djokovic is quite satisfied with his record against most of the top players on tour.
"But yeah, the record against most of the top players, well, against pretty much all of the top players is positive, which is great," he added.
If he gets through his Round-of-32 match against Cressy on Tuesday, the six-time champion will face the winner of the match between Karen Khachanov and Marc-Andrea Huesler in the next round. Huesler stunned 11th seed Jannik Sinner, who was seen as the toughest potential opponent for the Serb in the Round of 16.