Novak Djokovic angrily accused British fans of disrespecting him last night after sealing victory for Serbia over Great Britain in the Davis Cup quarter final.
The world number one became incensed after beating Cam Norrie 6-4 6-4 to clinch the tie 2-0 as spectators from the UK initially banged drums and sang during his post-match interview on court.
He said as cited by Sports Central: ‘Learn how to respect players, how to behave yourselves, learn how to respect people, you shut up, you be quiet, raising his voice and gesticulating to a semi-official supporters’ group behind the umpires chair.
Other British spectators among the 5,000 or so present were also telling them to be quiet, as they wanted to hear what Djokovic had to say after another masterclass.
The world number one had also blown sarcastic kisses to the same section in the stands in response to some seemingly gentle goading after the first set.
Later, his adrenaline having subsided, Djokovic said: ‘In the Davis Cup, it's normal that sometimes fans step over the line, but in the heat of the moment you react too.
They can do whatever they want, but I'm going to respond to that. At the end I was trying to talk and they were purposely starting to play the drums and they were trying to annoy me the entire match. So we had a little bit of a chat in the end.’
Yet British tennis’s barmy army are not quite cut from the same cloth as, say, their football counterparts. GB Captain Leon Smith did not judge their behaviour to have been too grievous: ‘One of the things that's good about Davis Cup and team competition is that actually you're kind of meant to make noise. 'There is a bit that goes over (the top), comments, I could hear a couple. I would hate to see it quietening down, because there's enough quiet tennis as it is. ‘I think he was just a bit p****d (off) about a bit of the noise coming from behind. Like I say, I don't think it was that bad.’
Even before taking to the court Djokovic had cast his spell, with Jack Draper admitting that his mere presence had piled on extra pressure to win the opening rubber that would have kept them in the match.
Draper was to go down to an outstanding performance from his opposite number Miomir Kecmanovic. The 21 year-old southpaw from Surrey admitted that the knowing Djokovic was a near certainty to take the second point had its own effect.
Draper said after his 7-6 7-6 defeat: ‘It's difficult knowing that Cam has to go and play Djokovic after, and that's kind of seemingly a must-win match for me. ’It's definitely a tough challenge to go out there knowing that there is a lot more almost pressure on me to win the match. ‘It’s an invaluable experience for me at a young age - that's the kind of pressure that, if I want to be a top player, I have to cope with and have to perform under.’
The loss effectively made the evening a formality. The doubles rubber, which Britain would have been favourites for with a team of Neal Skupski and Joe Salisbury, was rendered an irrelevance.
Kecmanovic played far above his ranking of 55. Neither Dan Evans nor Andy Murray were available due to injury, but both would have had to be at their best to beat him.
Draper has been in good form after finally ridding himself of injuries, but after starting the match with three aces found the Serb stubbornly resistant. The young British player played his part in some incredible rallies, and his only real letdown was the first tiebreak, in which he served two double faults to lose it 7-2.
Norrie has recently taken a rare break from the game after admitting to feeling burnt out, and it looked to have done him good. He competed well against Djokovic but the Serb showed why he has lost only once since Wimbledon.
.
