"Rafa and Roger were the biggest superstars, but Novak came in and beat them": Patrick Mouratoglou sees reason behind Djokovic booing and hatred

Despite winning three of the four possible Grand Slams this season and ending the year as World No.1, Novak Djokovic is still not beloved by a certain fanbase and Patrick Mouratoglou claims to know the reason behind their disapproval.

The Serbian extended his Grand Slam lead to 24 titles, which pushes him even further ahead of Big Three rivals Rafael Nadal (22) and Roger Federer (20). Additionally, the Serbian leads them in head-to-head meetings and has shown little sign of slowing down, while Federer has retired and Nadal appears to be heading in that direction next year. Mouratoglou believes these factors play a part in some fan's dislike of the 36-year old.

“Rafa and Roger were the biggest superstars of tennis, but Novak came in and beat both of them and the crowds hated him for that,” said Mouratoglou in an interview ahead of the Ultimate Tennis Showdown in London this weekend. “I think he is booed for other reasons as well. He says he doesn’t like this negativity, but sometimes he pushes the crowd to book him because it helps him during the matches.

“What we should not forget is has 14 million followers on Instagram, he is a huge hero in Serbia. He is the biggest name in tennis and we will all miss him when he stops playing the sport.”

Djokovic has faced boos and jeers crowds in Paris, Wimbledon and Turin in recent months. Furthermore, the World No.1 posted a sarcastic message on Instagram after his coach Goran Ivanisevic was denied the Coach of the Year prize despite guiding the Serbian to remarkable success this year.