"When Novak Djokovic imitated Sharapova, people said he was trying too hard to please others...but that's simply how he was" - Paul McNamee
Former Australian player Paul McNamee has known Novak Djokovic since the early days of his career. In a recent interview, McNamee revisited Djokovic's imitation of Maria Sharapova; he said that while people thought the Serb was trying too hard to please others, that was not the case.
At the 2024 US Open, McNamee sat down for a chat about Djokovic with Sport Klub. He was the director of the Australian Open when Djokovic made his first appearance at the Slam. The 69-year-old has known the Serb for almost 20 years, and he highlighted how Djokovic was before people tried to "mold" him into a celebrity.
McNamee referred to the time Djokovic imitated his friend Sharapova, which he did multiple times in 2013, much to the Russian's amusement. According to the Aussie, people mistakenly thought the Serb was trying too hard to please others, but it was just Djokovic being himself - as he had been since his teenage years.
“He took the microphone and sang at the New Year’s party, he was friendly to everyone, so open and refreshing. That character of his later was pushed into the background," McNamee said.
"When he imitated Sharapova and the others, people said that he was trying too hard to please others, but actually, that was Novak – that’s what I saw when he was a teenager, simply that’s how he was, open, that’s how he was before ‘Novak Djokovic’ became a celebrity."
McNamee added that "people tried to mold Djokovic into a certain pattern of behavior" after he achieved celebrity status and that all these years have been "a challenge for him."
"I was there for Novak Djokovic’s first Grand Slam match" - Paul McNamee
During the interview with Sport Klub, Paul McNamee revealed that he first saw Novak Djokovic play at the qualifiers in Valencia. At the time, he was informed that two Serbian youngsters played very well - Djokovic and Ana Ivanovic.
McNamee has followed Djokovic ever since, and was there when the Serb played his first Grand Slam match at the 2005 Australian Open.
"His first match at the Australian Open was in 2005 with Marat Safin, and I was the director of AO at the time, and I escorted him out on the court. If you watch that video, you will see me accompanying Novak and Marat to that match, so I was there for Novak’s first Grand Slam match.”
Djokovic entered the main draw through qualifying. However, he lost the match against Marat Safin, the eventual winner, 6-0, 6-2, 6-1. Djokovic lost in the first and fourth rounds in 2006 and 2007, respectively, before winning his first Australian Open title in 2008.