Novak Djokovic has never been the most popular tennis player as he was always overshadowed by Nadal and Federer.
The Serbian nonetheless enjoys widespread popularity due to his significance for the game of tennis. Djokovic is arguably the best to ever do it and despite not being the most popular among fans he is slowly starting to gather more and more sympathy. The reception he received after the US Open final was something that meant a lot to him and moved him to tears.
Paris Masters Tournament director Guy Forget said on that:
"The public realized that even though Novak tends to be rigorous and always in control, there seems to be a huge wall that cannot be broken down. We saw him moved, affected, by this loss. The public showed that they admired this resilience, this pugnacity. This is actually why we are watching sports and follow this, it’s for the emotions that are conveyed by the tennis players."
Forget further said:
“Jimmy Connors, for instance, he wasn’t very much liked by the
public, but towards the end of his career, he was loved by everyone. Maybe we have here a tipping point. There’s more sympathy towards
him. But he’s not at the end of his career, unlike Jimmy Connors, at the
end of his career he was with fewer victories. It’s incredible what
Novak is doing right now."
And he finished off with:
“We’re delighted to have him among us for this tournament.”