Novak Djokovic attacks ‘disrespectful’ chants after routing Holger Rune

As the 2022 tennis season began to wind down in the cold indoor stadiums across Europe, Novak Djokovic found himself in an unusual situation. In the final of the Paris Masters that November, the Serb played a solid match and his level would have been sufficient to defeat many adversaries, but for once his opponent was even better. That night, a fearless 19-year-old named Holger Rune toppled Djokovic to win his first Masters 1000 title.

Performing at the highest level week in, week out, though, is a much greater task than producing occasional, early flashes of brilliance. Two years on from that striking encounter, Rune has not made as much progress as he might have hoped and this time, the match-up was rather a mismatch. Under the roof on Monday evening, an excellent Djokovic thoroughly outplayed Rune and silenced an overzealous Centre Court crowd, returning to the quarter-finals of Wimbledon with a comfortable 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 win.

The match was also notable for the crowd’s cheers, with spectators bellowing “Ruuuune” in a deep, elongated chant with increasing force throughout the evening. After his win, Djokovic thanked the respectful parts of the crowd and he criticised those who disrespected him. When the on-court interviewer suggested that fans may have just been supporting Rune rather than disrespecting him, Djokovic responded.

“They were, I don’t accept it,” he said. “No. I know they were cheering for Rune but that’s an excuse to also boo. 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. It’s fine, it’s OK. I focus on the respectful people, who have respect, that paid the ticket to come and watch tonight, and love tennis and appreciate the effort that the players put in here. I’ve played in a much more hostile environment, trust me. You guys can’t touch me.”

The victory marks a 15th career quarter-final for Djokovic at Wimbledon and a 60th major quarter-final. Regardless of how far he goes, it already ranks as one of his most remarkable quarter-final runs. Only 26 days before Wimbledon began, Djokovic underwent surgery on the torn medial meniscus that forced him to withdraw from the quarter-finals of the French Open.

At the time, it seemed reasonable to assume that Djokovic might not be present at Wimbledon in any form, particularly with the Olympics looming a few weeks later on clay. Instead, he continues to beat quality tennis players, to grow with every round and he remains a clear title contender even with the tournament favourites still present in the draw.

Between his breakthrough win over Djokovic in Paris and his rise to a top four ranking last year, for some time Rune seemed to be the young player closest to breaking through after Carlos Alcaraz. But this sport is not easy. While Alcaraz has continued to soar and Jannik Sinner stepped up, this has not been an easy year for Rune.

His lack of confidence was reflected in his very first service game here, the 15th seed throwing in a horrible, error-strewn game to lose his serve and trail 0-2. It would prove to be the decisive game of the first set as Djokovic served well and dominated the baseline with his forehand, rolling through the opening set.

Throughout the match, Djokovic served well, he dictated most exchanges from the baseline and he cycled through his arsenal of shots well, keeping Rune guessing with drop shots and net approaches while remaining solid in key moments. As the match became increasingly one-sided, the crowd’s cheers became louder and Djokovic gestured towards some members of the audience. Still, he remained extremely solid as he closed out the win.

“To all the fans that have respect and stayed here tonight, thank you from the bottom of my heart, I appreciate it,” Djokovic said. “And to all the fans have chosen to disrespect me, have a gooood night,” said Djokovic, referencing the “Rune” chants.

Djokovic will next face Alex de Minaur, the ninth seed, in quarter-final No 60 on Wednesday. Earlier, De Minaur defeated Arthur Fils 6-2, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 but he suffered an injury scare at the end of the match after sliding out to his forehand. “I’m feeling pretty decent. Again, body went through a pretty physical match out there. Body feels a little bit ginger everywhere. I’m not going to lie. I’ve done my recovery. I’m sure I’ll be feeling great tomorrow,” he said.

Few players can relate to Djokovic’s current challenges quite like Taylor Fritz, who himself tore his meniscus at the French Open in 2021, returning just three weeks later for Wimbledon after undergoing surgery. He says that his knee was extremely sore after each match he played.

Now fully healed, mature and established among the elite, on Monday Fritz took another step forward as he pulled off a spectacular comeback from two sets down to defeat Alexander Zverev, the fourth seed, 4-6, 6-7 (4), 6-4, 7-6 (3), 6-3.

For much of Fritz’s career, he struggled to bring his best form to the major tournaments. His win over Zverev on Monday night, however, marks his second top-10 win at a grand slam tournament and he has now reached the quarter-finals in three of his last four slams.