"Shows how influential Djokovic is, it’s the endless stream of abuse I’m getting from anti-vaxxers he inspired" - Journalist who dubbed Novak Djokovic a 'disgrace'

Novak Djokovic's decision not to take the COVID-19 vaccine has sharply divided opinion. While his stance on the matter has made him an even bigger hero for a few, many think otherwise - like UK-based journalist Benjamin Butterworth.

A few days ago, Butterworth strongly criticized the Serb for his vaccination stance. Since then Djokovic's fans have been attacking the journalist on social media, and on Sunday he shared a screenshot of a comment by one of the World No. 7's fans.

"F**k your opinions about Djokovic. He is thinking, you are not. Vaccination is sh*t," the comment read.

A fan commented on one of Benjamin Butterworth's photos.

Butterworth hit back at those who were constantly sending him derogatory messages, calling them "anti-vaxxers." He also opined that if everyone had said no to the vaccine like Djokovic, there would be no tennis tournaments happening around the world.

"If anything shows how influential Djokovic is, it’s the endless stream of abuse I’m getting from anti-vaxxers he inspired. I’ve made headline news in Serbia this week and am inundated with aggressive comments from his fans," Butterworth said.

"Djokovic doesn’t deserve a penny in prize money from Wimbledon. If we had all made the selfish decision to refuse the Covid vaccine, as he did, there would be no tennis tournaments. He showed his fellow competitors and tennis fans no respect at all," he added.

Speaking on the Dan Wootton Tonight show on GB News last week, Butterworth had emphasized the importance of the vaccine. He had also claimed that one of the greatest tennis players in the world was wrongly influencing people into not getting it.

"We know that the chance of passing it on is reduced by about a third if not more, so it is beneficial in terms of passing it on," Butterworth said. "But Djokovic is one of the most famous sports stars in the world and he chose to use that platform, a platform that lots of people admire him for being such a remarkable tennis player, and he used that to put people off getting the vaccine."

"Novak Djokovic is one of the most dangerous people in sport and one of the most dangerous celebrities on the planet," he added. "If you look at the report from The Lancet, a medical journal, it says that an estimated 14.4 million people have had their lives saved by virtue of having the vaccine.So it’s clear that what Novak Djokovic did is put people at risk. And that’s why he’s a disgrace."

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Novak Djokovic's Wimbledon triumph was his first Grand Slam title in 364 days

Novak Djokovic and Nick Kyrgios after Wimbledon final.

Novak Djokovic won the first three Grand Slam tournaments last year, equalling Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer with 20 Major titles. At the time, it looked like the Serb would be the first to break the three-way tie by winning his 21st Major title. However, current World No. 1 Daniil Medvedev outclassed Djokovic in the 2021 US Open final, winning the match in straight sets.

After Djokovic was deported from Australia due to his unvaccinated status, it was Rafael Nadal who clinched the Australian Open title, making him a 21-time Grand Slam champion. The Spaniard further extended the lead by winning his 14th French Open title in June.

This month, Djokovic won the Wimbledon title to go past Federer's tally of 20 titles and inch closer to Nadal's 22 Majors.