(VIDEO) "They’re doing me a favour": Novak Djokovic urges crowd to boo him before winning match at 2023 Paris Masters

Novak Djokovic was seen urging the crowd at the 2023 Paris Masters to boo him before going on to win a difficult clash against Tallon Griekspoor.

The World No. 1 looked to be in some trouble after he lost the first set and subsequently called a doctor to the court. Djokovic later revealed that he was suffering from a stomach bug that had caused him to drop his level.

The 36-year-old then had to save five break points against Griekspoor in the second set before taking it to a tiebreak where he was able to level the match and force a decider. Following this, Djokovic broke the Dutch player in the fifth game and looked set to take the victory before a double fault saw his opponent break back in game eight.

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Djokovic encouraged by booing

It was at this point that the crowd made their opinions clear as they applauded Djokovic's double fault and booed the 24-time Grand Slam champion. However, rather than being deterred by the crowd, the Serbian player sarcastically applauded them and yelled "boo more, boo more" repeatedly during the changeover. 

Following this, Djokovic returned to form and secured the final set 6-4 in order to book his spot in the quarter-finals at the final ATP Masters 1000 tournament of the season, where he will face World No. 6 Holger Rune.

After the match, he took a dig at the Paris Masters crowd, revealing that their actions actually encouraged him to play better.

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"They’re doing me a favor. The more they cheer against me, the better for me. They wake something in me that they perhaps don’t want to see, winner," he said.

This is in stark contrast to third seed Daniil Medvedev's reaction to the crowd earlier in the tournament.

The Russian player was booed during his match against Grigor Dimitrov on Tuesday, November 1, leading him to walk back to his bench and refuse to continue playing until the fans were silent. After he ended up being defeated by his opponent, he was also accused of showing the crowd the middle finger before leaving the court.

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