Novak Djokovic provoked to act by John McEnroe's 'don't be fooled' accusation

Wales Online

01-07-2025

Novak Djokovic provoked to act by John McEnroe's 'don't be fooled' accusation
Novak Djokovic faces Alexandre Muller this afternoon on Centre Court at Wimbledon
Novak Djokovic of Serbia
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Novak Djokovic is back at Wimbledon and is straight into the action this afternoon.
The 38-year-old is seen very much as the veteran of the men's game now, with a new generation of stars emerging in the shapes of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner in the past two years or so.
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Still, Djokovic remains a formidable opponent, especially on grass, and the Serb will be hoping to take his game to French opponent Alexandre Muller this afternoon on Centre Court.
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Last year, at the same venue, Djokovic's preparation was far from ideal, heading into the tournament carrying a knee injury.
The seven-time SW19 champion had been forced to retire from the French Open at the last-eight stage with a torn meniscus, which needed surgery.
Against all the odds, he decided to accept his place at Wimbledon just four weeks later, much to the confusion of his wife. He admitted he could not give Jelena a straight answer.
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When asked by FOX News why he opted not to sit out the historic competition, Djokovic quipped: "My wife also kind of asked the same question, right? Which is normal.
"[You are] 37 years old, you want to maybe have less risk and prepare yourself for the Olympic Games? So from that perspective, I don't have an answer to that.
"But, I do have something that is described as a feeling of not missing out at a Grand Slam while I can still play and while I'm still active and at this level.
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"I wouldn't call it a fear of missing out. I would just say it's this incredible desire to play, just to compete, particularly because it is Wimbledon, the tournament that always has been a dream tournament for me when I was a kid. Just the thought of me missing Wimbledon was just not correct. I didn't want to deal with that."
Feud with McEnroe
Injury struck Djokovic again this year at the Australian Open. The Serb suffered a muscle tear during his quarter-final win over Alcaraz and was in visible discomfort on the court.
John McEnroe, though, on commentary duty, appeared to suggest the Grand Slam winner was making a meal of his injury. "This isn't the first time we've seen this routine. Don't be fooled," he said during commentary.
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But the injury was indeed very real, with Djokovic having to retire hurt in the semis against Alexander Zverev. He then posted an image of his MRI scan, saying: "Thought I'd leave this here for all the sports injury 'experts' out there."
Speaking later about the controversy ahead of the Qatar Open, via Tennis 365, he appeared to take aim at McEnroe, adding: "Well, I was provoked by the fact that several times in a row, as long as I was in Australia, I was injured on the 21st and the 23rd.
"I can't say everyone, but I felt a fairly large group of people thought that it was not true and that my injuries were actually some kind of provocation on my part or to play strategic mental games with my opponents.
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"And I would not have reacted if some legends of our sport had not reacted.
"I think that when some things remain on social media, that's fine, but when it escalates to the point where people have a dilemma and simply question my integrity and the credibility of what I said.
"Especially when it comes from some people who are really legends of the sport and who have a multi-million audience that listens to them when they broadcast the matches, then I felt the need to react, to show the recording from the MRI."