Ace golfer Rory Mcllory shared his views on Novak Djokovic always playing in front of hostile crowds since his young days, when he played against the Americans, Rafael Nadal, and Roger Federer. The Serb was in contention with Taylor Fritz in the US Open quarterfinals, defeating the American No. 1 despite consistent distractions.
While pursuing his 25th Grand Slam title at the 2025 US Open, Djokovic moved past promising rivals like Zachary Svajda, Cameron Norrie, and Jan-Lennard Struff to reach the quarterfinals against Fritz. The 24-time major champion took an early lead 2-0 but was seemingly fazed when the crowd rallied for his opponent. In the third set, the 38-year-old fell to Fritz after his double fault allowed the latter to get a break point, all while the crowd erupted in loud cheers.
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Frustrated, Djokovic approached the chair umpire and lambasted him for handling the situation poorly. In response, the umpire clarified that he asked the crowd to stop shouting, but his efforts didn't help.
Opining on how the Serb has been playing in hostile environments all his life, golfer Rory Mcllory discussed that Djokovic is a professional in handling such situations and channels his energy the right way.
"I watched a little bit of Novak Djokovic last night playing in his match against Taylor Fritz. It was a very pro-American crowd, you know, and he's been the best at handling that sort of, you know, you know, he's had to deal with it his whole life, whether it's playing against an American in New York or playing against Roger or Rafa. So, you know, being able to, he came and spoke to us a little bit about that stuff last time in Rome. So, maybe taking the leaf out of his book and channeling that energy the right way. But again, it's all we can do is control our reaction and our emotions to it. And I think the less we play into it, the better it is for us," he said (via BBC News).
The former No.1 will go up against Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinals, his fourth major semifinal appearance this year.
Novak Djokovic received a word of caution from Carlos Alcaraz ahead of the semifinal clash
Novak Djokovic had shortened his schedule for the past few months, only focusing on the major tournaments and putting forth his A game. As someone who has been vying for his record-extending 25th title since 2023, the Serb has nothing but power-packed performances to offer. Speaking on the same, Carlos Alcaraz said he would want to avenge his Australian Open quarterfinal loss to the Olympic gold medalist.
"We all know Novak's games. It doesn't matter that he has been out of the tour since Wimbledon playing great matches here. I know he's hungry. I know his ambition for more. Uh so let's see. Uh I know he I played a lot of times against him. I really want to revenge," he said (via press conference; beginning 5:52).
The 38-year-old achieved more laurels than any other tennis player in history, winning all of the Big titles and achieving a triple Grand Slam.
