Novak Djokovic slams ‘provoking’ Australian Open crowd, calls for NFL-style entertainment

MELBOURNE, Australia — Novak Djokovic said he “loved” Danielle Collins’ reaction to a hostile crowd at the Australian Open, adding that he was now a “big fan” of the American.

After beating local favorite Destanee Aiava in a raucous Kia Arena, Collins blew kisses to the crowd and thanked them during her on-court interview for helping her land a “big paycheck.”

Asked about the incident after beating No. 26 seed Tomas Machac in straight sets, Djokovic said with a smile: “I loved his answer. I loved everything she said on the pitch, off the pitch.

“Big fan of Danielle Collins after this. I was before, but now, a big fan (smiling). I love him.”

He added: “I don’t think I would be that polite, and I know exactly that feeling. So I think she was funny, smart and just a huge fan of what she did. Big fan.

Dealing with the hostile Australian crowd has been a recurring theme of this tournament, with Britain’s Jack Draper listening to the home fans as he celebrated a five-set victory over Thanasi Kokkinakis on Wednesday, then facing a wolf whistle in the latter stages of his match. with Aleksandar Vukic.

Djokovic did not face an Australian player on Friday night, but he often has run-ins with fans who like to make him angry. This happened several times against Machac, with Djokovic urging the referee to make an announcement telling fans to calm down midway through the third set. Djokovic made frequent gestures toward fans who were bothering him, including at the end of the match when he pointed at one and cut off his ear.

“A few people here and there (crossed the line),” he said afterward. “I understand you have a few more drinks and then you go for it.

“If it’s repetitive, it goes on for an hour, someone in the corner is saying things to you that you don’t want to hear and constantly provoking you, then of course you get to the point where you just respond.

“So I tried to tolerate it, but at some point I had to react. »

Despite disagreeing with the behavior of some fans, Djokovic said he would advocate for tennis to move away from its traditional image by adopting a reasonable level of raucousness – including, he said, having dancers on the field in the style of the NFL and NBA Entertainment.

“Why wouldn’t we consider doing something between sets like the Super Bowl or the NBA? When there’s a downtime, you know, dancers come in and this and that. This wouldn’t be a problem for me. Nice dancers, you know, there for a few extra minutes of break so I can relax and think of something else (smiling).

“I feel like it would bring a more fun and entertaining element to tennis, which we know has been quite traditional and perhaps conservative in some areas. When we talk about conservative, we know that Wimbledon is the most conservative. But for example, with Wimbledon, I wouldn’t change much. I would keep it as is, because it is so unique, all white, strawberries and cream and everything about it is so elegant and chic.

“But everyone else, the US Open, I mean, in the United States, you know very well what entertainment is. So I’m up for it, as are maybe gradual changes (smile). The dancers first.

Next up for Djokovic is a fourth-round match on Sunday against another Czech, No. 24 seed Jiri Lehecka.

(Top photo: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)