Novak Djokovic post-match interview: Tennis star blasts Wimbledon crowd's 'disrespect' after win vs. Holger Rune

Sarah Effress

Novak Djokovic post-match interview: Tennis star blasts Wimbledon crowd's 'disrespect' after win vs. Holger Rune image

Novak Djokovic put the crowd on notice after his win against Holger Rune at Wimbledon on Monday.

Throughout the match, fans were loudly saying "Ruuuuuune!," as his supporters often do. However, this was taken by Djokovic to be "Booooo"s in his direction, which they very well could have been. 

It's unclear what was actually being said, but the 24-time Grand Slam champion was not happy either way. He made sure to address the audience in his post-game comments before leaving the court. Here's what the quarterfinalist had to say after his gutty three-set win.

MORE: When is Novak Djokovic's next match?

Novak Djokovic post-match interview today

Djokovic took a mocking approach in his address to the crowd after the match, both thanking his supporters and demeaning his opposers:

"To all the fans that have respect and that stayed here tonight: Thank you very much from the bottom of my heart," he said. "And to all those people that have chosen to disrespect the player -- in this case, me -- have a goooood night. Gooooood night. Gooooood night. Very gooooood night."

Clearly trying to mimic the "boos" he believes he heard, Djokovic continued on after the interviewer tried to insinuate the noise was just support for Rune. The seven-time Wimbledon champ would not accept that.

"I know they were cheering for Rune, but that's an excuse to also boo," Djokovic said. "Listen, I've been on the tour for more than 20 years, so, trust me, I know all the tricks. I know how it works."

He finished by saying "I played in much more hostile environments, trust me. You guys can't touch me."

In the post-match press conference, Djokovic was asked whether he thinks the All-England Club should step in to curb fan behavior. He responded that he doesn't know what they can really do about it.

"Yes, you could argue maybe a chair umpire or whoever can step in in certain moments and calm them down, but there's not much you can do," he said. "You're not going to take out the whole section of the crowd or stadium because they're misbehaving or showing disrespect."

Novak Djokovic vs. Holger Rune score

PlayerS1S2S3F
Rune3420
Djokovic6663

MORE: Who won Wimbledon last year?

Novak Djokovic Wimbledon record

Djokovic has won Wimbledon seven times and has appeared in nine Finals. He has participated in the tournament every year except for 2020, when it was not held due to the Covid-19 pandemic. 

Here is the tennis star's record in Wimbledon since 2005:

YearResult
2005Second round
2006Fourth round
2007Semifinal
2008Second round
2009Quarterfinal
2010Semifinal
2011Winner
2012Semifinal
2013Final
2014Winner
2015Winner
2016Third round
2017Quarterfinals
2018Winner
2019Winner
2021Winner
2022Winner
2023Final

Sarah Effress

Sarah Effress Photo

Sarah Effress is an editorial intern for The Sporting News. She is a recent graduate of Northwestern University, and loves to talk soccer and women's college sports.