"I saw this same thing with Martina Navratilova" - Pam Shriver explains reason behind Novak Djokovic being embraced by Chinese fans

Novak Djokovic is currently in action at the Shanghai Masters and the Serb has been met with an incredible display of support from fans during the tournament. Reacting to this, Pam Shriver recently compared Djokovic’s fan reception in China to the love Martina Navratilova received towards the end of her career.

Djokovic is undoubtedly one of the greatest tennis players of all time. However, for most of his career, the 38-year-old lacked the support of the crowd, with audiences often favouring Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal. Now, with Federer and Nadal both retired, the Serb has been warmly welcomed by fans in Shanghai.

Reacting to this, Pam Shiver drew parallels between Djokovic and Martina Navratilova, saying in an appearance on the Inside-In tennis podcast,

“You know, I saw this same thing play out with Martina Navratilova. At the heart of Martina's career, like Djokovic, (she was) not really appreciated by the fans. You know, in the case of Martina, it was Chris Evert that was more beloved or it was Tracy Austin or it was Stephie Graff as a young player. But then I always remember the last couple of years of Martina and the crowd’s reactions and the embracing just happened.”

Shriver reflected that fans were now beginning to grasp the enormity of Novak Djokovic's career, adding,

“And it's the exact same thing that's happening with Novak. Even if you were a Federer fan or a Nadal fan and you really didn't like this guy Djokovic because he beat your guy so many different times, now he's the last one standing. Now they're looking at his record going ‘holy moly, are we ever going to see a man again win 25? Well, 24 majors trying to win 25. And I love it. It's fun.”

Despite being at the tail end of his career, Djokovic still remains one of the most dominant players in the ATP tour at the minute, having reached the semifinals of all four Grand Slams this year.

Novak Djokovic reaches Shanghai Masters quarterfinals

Djokovic at the 2025 Shanghai Rolex Masters (Image Source: Getty)

Throughout 2025, Novak Djokovic has been extremely picky about his tournament schedule. The Serb has competed in only a handful of events outside the Majors and many were surprised when he announced his decision to compete at the Shanghai Masters.

In Shanghai, the 38-year-old has battled difficult conditions with the humidity forcing him to throw up on court multiple times. Despite this he has persevered, downing Marin Cilic, Yannik Hanfman and Jaume Munar to reach the quarterfinals of the ATP Masters 1000 event.

Up next, Novak Djokovic will take on Zizou Bergs for his quarterfinals encounter. The 24-time Grand Slam champion has never played the Belgian before but remains a favorite for the win in their clash.