I take my hat off to what Nadal has done, Novak Djokovic praises Rafael Nadal for…
Novak Djokovic, the reigning Wimbledon champion, will open the day on centre court at the All England Club on Monday in his match against South Korea’s Soonwoo Kwon.
The Serbian is hoping for his seventh title, and it is worth remembering that Djokovic has won the last three editions of the British tournament.
Before this year’s tournament, though, he couldn’t help but pile praise on Spaniard Rafael Nadal.
“He had surgery, he missed half a year and after that, to come back and win a Grand Slam…. It’s impressive,” Djokovic said of Nadal. “Hats off to him for what he’s done.
“He’s an incredible champion, with a real fighting spirit. He’s to be admired. He’s one of my biggest rivals, but I can only have respect for him.”
With Russian and Belarusian players banned from Wimbledon this year after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Djokovic admitted to being confused as to the good that decision could do.
I take my hat off to what Nadal has done, Novak Djokovic praises Rafael Nadal for…
“I don’t fully agree with banning Russians and Belarusians from playing,” Djokovic said.
“I don’t see how they could help everything that has happened. I don’t see it as fair. If it happened to me, without having contributed to the conflict, I wouldn’t see it as fair.
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“We should remember that between ’92 and ’96, Serbians couldn’t compete at international level. I know how they m
