World No.1 Novak Djokovic received heavy criticism from fans following his shock loss to Jannik Sinner at the 2024 Australian Open, prompting renown French coach Patrick Mouratoglou to come to the Serbian's defense.
Djokovic fell to Sinner in a thrilling semifinal in Melbourne, as the Italian prevailed in four sets. The 24-time Grand Slam champion was hoping to add an 11th Australian Open title to his resume, but fell short of his ambitions as he was outplayed by Sinner, who would go on to win the title.
As a result of his semifinal loss, Djokovic saw his 33-match unbeaten streak at the Melbourne Major end. This prompted many fans online to insinuate that the 36-year old's career was coming to an end, despite him being the favorite to win the tournament a few weeks earlier.
WTA star Caroline Garcia was the first to speak on the matter, pointing out the hypocrisy of some fans.
"I was scrolling a bit and basically Djokovic was the GOAT 2 weeks ago, still so young, moving so well beyond of this age, going for an other Slam once again, a true inspiration. And now he is too old, we are in a complete new era, he is finished for tennis … this is funny," wrote Garcia on Twitter.
Mouratoglou agreed with his compatriot, saying fans were quick to turn on players and label them as "done" should they suffer a loss.
"That says it all about the expectations and pressure a player experiences when at the top of the game. They are not allowed to fail otherwise they are labelled « done »," tweeted Mouratoglou.
That says it all about the expectations and pressure a player experiences when at the top of the game. They are not allowed to fail otherwise they are labelled « done ».
I was scrolling a bit and basically Djokovic was the GOAT 2 weeks ago, still so young, moving so well beyond of this age, going for an other Slam once again, a true inspiration. And now he is too old, we are in a complete new era, he is finished for tennis … this is funny
