"Gentleman way of saying we are not friends";"Exactly what Andre Agassi said" - Fans react to Novak Djokovic's 'honest' take on bond with Rafael Nadal

Novak Djokovic dismissing the notion of a brotherhood with arch-rival Rafael Nadal and insisting that they have a strictly professional relationship has sparked a discussion among tennis fans. The Serb made these remarks after his blockbuster second-round clash against Nadal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Djokovic kept his hopes of securing his first Olympic gold alive by claiming a dominant 6-1, 6-4 win over the Spaniard in their 60th career meeting, improving to a 31-29 lead in their head-to-head record. Although the 24-time Grand Slam champion spoke highly of their rivalry after the clash, he dismissed the idea of a close personal relationship.

Speaking to the Serbian media, the World No. 2 downplayed the concept of having a 'brotherhood' with Nadal, explaining that it is difficult for rivals to maintain a close relationship because they cannot exchange details of their personal lives due to the risk of "exposing" themselves.

"It's tough to be close, honestly greatest rivals, and you don't want to maybe give insights to your life or the way you feel and stuff because that can maybe expose you and stuff. I guess that's one of the reasons why maybe we didn't connect so close and I don't think at that level you can really connect so close to anybody, but who knows when the career ends for both of us," Djokovic said.

Nevertheless, the Serb expressed hope that their relationship could evolve into a friendship and that they would have the opportunity to reflect on their storied rivalry together after retirement.

"It's a long life hopefully for both of us, and we're both family people and hopefully we can address the different side of our relationship and reflect on things that we went through together, that we lived together, the special moments in a different way," he added.

Fans were impressed by Novak Djokovic's "honest" remarks about his relationship with the Spaniard, with one fan pointing out that Andre Agassi shared a similar sentiment about not befriending rivals in his autobiography.

"Very honest answer. This is exactly what Agassi also said in his book," one fan commented.

"He's being honest. He thinks about friendship on literal terms, not as a pr thing. Friendship means a lot of things and they have too much of a history and rivalry to become "Brothers,"" another fan chimed in.

"This is true sportsmanship and genuineness. Not the PR Bromance of Fedal once they realized Novak overtook both🤣. ‘We both care more about being nice people’🤡🤡🤡," said another.

Fans continued to applaud the Serb for not "sugarcoating" his beliefs and for employing a gentlemanly approach to disclose that he is not friends with Nadal.

"The gentleman way of saying we are not friends... Brilliant Djokovic...," one fan posted.

"What a great answer! No sugar coating it," another fan wrote.

"Well, that was a dumb question to begin with but I love his answer. Always genuine and honest," said yet another.

"I don't know how Rafael Nadal feels in his body, but let's hope we can play some more" - Novak Djokovic after Paris Olympics 2R clash

Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal (Source: Getty)

Following the clash, Novak Djokovic highlighted his "unique" and "special" rivalry with Rafael Nadal. He expressed his desire for more encounters between them, expressing his belief that a continuation of their rivalry would benefit the sport.

The Serb also conveyed his uncertainty regarding Nadal's plans but hoped that the 38-year-old would continue playing so they could face each other again.

"There's no other rivalry in the history of tennis that's had 60 matches between the two players. So I think that itself makes it very, very unique and very special," Djokovic said.

"I just hope for the sake of our rivalry and the sport in general that we'll get to face each other once or maybe a few times, on different surfaces, in different parts of the world, because I feel like it can only benefit the sport. I don't know how he feels in his body, what his plans are, but let's hope we can play some more," he added.

Following his win over Nadal, Djokovic will take on Germany's Dominik Koepfer in the third round of the Paris Olympics. If the World No. 2 triumphs over Koepfer, he will battle it out against Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas or Argentina's Sebastian Baez for a place in the semifinals.