After a very exciting match and more than two hours of intense fighting, the American Madison Keys managed to defeat the current world number one, the Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka, this Saturday and, consequently, score the Australian Open at the age of 29, her first Grand Slam. There are only a few hours left to conclude the first of the four most important tournaments of the year and to also know the final outcome in the men’s team.
Jannik Sinner and Alexander Zverev are competing for the title today, the first of them trying to repeat the previous year’s triumph and the second trying to finally open his ranking in the Grand Slams. Whether the victory falls on the side of the transalpine or for the first time the German, none of them will favor the interests of the Spanish tennis player Carlos Alcaraz. If the Italian wins, he will come dangerously close, with three trophies of this type, to the four that our player owns; and in the event that it is Zverev who lifts him up, he will gain greater peace of mind and confidence to face the next big events and the Spanish tennis player will move away from the second position in the world. This fact would also propose a new contender in the fight for number one in the ranking ATP.
And yet, as interesting as the sporting reality has been in these last two weeks, on Friday it was another type of event that stood out widely reflected in the media and on social networks around the world: the farewell with boos and whistles that a good part of the public dedicated to Novak Djokovic when he announced the abandonment of his semifinal match after losing the first set against Zverev.
I believe that a great champion like the Serbian, someone who has contributed to writing the most excellent pages in the history of tennis, should not leave any court in this way and, even less so, from the Rod Laver Arena, where he He holds the record of victories and titles. Respect, this is my particular feeling, is deserved in the difficult moment, without a doubt, of having to abandon the track that has seen him win so many times.
Another question is that we ask ourselves, once the facts have occurred, the reason for the protest that broke out in the stands. First of all, I understand that the public showed their disappointment and anger at the deprivation of the expected show after having paid a ticket for it. But the second reason, and probably the most important, is that, over the years, a certain suspicion has been fostered around Novak, due to his grimaces or histrionics, which has raised doubts about the veracity of his injuries.
On this occasion, suspicions began to arise in his quarterfinal match against Carlos Alcaraz. After losing the first set and with obvious gestures of pain, the Serbian made his opponent and the general public understand that it would be difficult for him to continue his match. But the reality was that, not only did he face the rest of the match with total normality, but he even ended up winning it. In his semifinal match against Zverev, however, he played the entire first set with apparent normality and without visible signs of pain until he decided to abandon it just after the German scored it for him.
When a player faces physical problems in a match of this nature, he usually rushes the decision to withdraw until the end. He calls the physio, he performs some games with a diminished performance and, only upon realizing the irremediable fatality, he opts for retirement. On more than one occasion we have seen Novak with similar performances, with facial gestures and body language that contradict what we are seeing on the track and that sow certain doubts about the authenticity of his problems.
I imagine how hard it must have been for him to have to accept such an adverse reaction from the public. If it is already difficult to assume that one cannot continue fighting, it must be much more costly if this is accompanied by the public’s incomprehension. I hope that the Serbian tennis player recovers well and can continue admiring his incredible game throughout the rest of the year, but also that he manages to convey to the public the confidence that a champion of his immense stature should have more than earned.
