Roger Federer got angry after losing & left without saying bye: Nikola Gnjatovic

In 2001, Roger Federer caused a sensation by knocking out reigning champ and grasscourt legend Pete Sampras in the 4th round of Wimbledon. In 2003, Federer became the first Swiss man to win a Major, by beating Mark Philippoussis in the Wimbledon final. And from there began his journey towards winning 20 Grand Slams - a journey during which he has rarely lost his cool.

But Roger Federer wasn't always the serene and calm figure he is today. In fact, as one of the players who faced Federer during their junior days recounts, the Swiss was prone to fits of anger and bad sportsmanship.

Former pro Nikola Gnjatovic said yesterday in an interview with Blick that he didn't have the most positive experience when he ran into a young Roger Federer in the 90s. And Gnjatovic didn't sugar-coat his words while narrating the incident.

I defeated Roger Federer: Gnjatovic

The Laver Cup Press Conference

Roger Federer recently became the world's highest-paid athlete, with earnings of $106.3 million. That alone speaks volumes about how prolific the Swiss legend has been over the years, in terms of competitive performance as well as likability.

Roger Federer is the first tennis player to reach No. 1 on Forbes' list of the highest-paid athletes in the world 🎾 pic.twitter.com/9UZRfPKvCx

— ESPN (@espn) May 29, 2020

But Gnjatovic, a promising tennis player who came up on the tennis scene in the 90s, once encountered a different side of the legend.

"I defeated Roger Federer," Gnjatovic said as he took part a freewheeling conversation about his days in tennis and also his run-ins with drugs.

The Serb had shown plenty of promise in his junior days, quickly establishing himself as one of the players to look out for. However, his success in juniors never translated to the professional tour; his highest career ranking was just World No. 759.

Gnjatovic is 39 years old today - just one year older than Federer - which means the two were juniors together before they turned pro. And there was some drama between them at that time.

"I trained with Roger Federer once. It was during the European Junior Tennis Championships in Germany," Gnjatovic said.

"I was leading him 3-1, before he got angry. Since Roger is very quick-tempered, we could not finish the match. He left the place, without even saying goodbye," he added.

In other words, Gnjatovic got under the skin of Roger Federer - which is not something we have seen very often on the pro tour.

Roger Federer wasn't always at his best behavior when he was young.

Roger Federer's growth from a spoiled brat to a legend

There are a few other accounts like this too, which show how Roger Federer was a bit of a spoiled brat when he was young. He behaved arrogantly on the court and polarized spectators with his attitude, often throwing tantrums after losing.

Roger Federer's journey from being a punk to attaining god-like status in the sport is well-documented. It took the untimely demise of his long-time coach Peter Carter to finally push the Swiss towards getting his act together.

And we all know what happened once he did that: today, Roger Federer is widely considered the greatest player of all time. Would Gnjatovic have predicted that when he saw a young and sulking Roger leaving the court in a huff?